Black Lion of Middle Earth
by JulieArchery107
Summary: After being separated from his mother in a ork attack, little Legolas is found by a clan of ancient warriors calling themselves: The Shinobi. He is raised in their ways after they discovered his unique abilities as an elf and was given a new name, Raion (Lion) After outliving his mentors, young Raion begins to travel aimlessly around Arda before a wizard asks him to join a quest...
1. Chapter 1

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 1

"Your name will be Raion."

The day was beautiful in the land of Mirkwood, once called Greenwood due to its magnificent trees that were its pride and joy.

Despite the growing darkness that came from Mordor, some of the trees stayed in the light and allowed the sun to lighten up the forest around them.

A dark-clad figure walked through the large forest, his horse in toe. Quiet curses could be heard erupting from the mouth of the figure every time a branch hit his face or a vine tramped his movement.

" _'This will help you with your medicine knowledge.'_ He said. _'You need to get out more or else you'll grow vines into the ground.'_ He said. _'You're the only one who can find those pesky, little mushrooms in that dark forest, Taseko.'_ He said." The man's voice high-pitched in imitating that of another. "Well, orc crap! Meshiru can do that just as well as I can, Keshin- _sensei_." Taseko yelled throwing his hands up, grass-green eyes blazing.

He felt something soft nudge him in the shoulder. He looked back and saw his faithful horse, Bruus looking at him as if to say: _'You know, for a ninja and a master of stealth you sure are adamant to let everybody know you're here.'_

The man glared at the animal. "Shut up before I decide you're too old for further service and eat you for diner." He then took a deep breath and placed a hand over his masked face. God how he _hated_ sneaking around the great Mirkwood forest in search for medical herbs that can only be found in this particular location, while also avoiding the elven guards that were patrolling the roads.

He and his fellow clan members were not welcome in king Thranduil's realm, long before the man was born.

That fact alone made it impossible for him to travel safely and comfortably, not having the luxury of riding his horse on a traveled forest road. Instead he has to go through bushes and long tree branches that have a terrible habit of scratching every bit of what was left of his uncovered face, with the intention of avoiding the elven king's patrol.

Growling at both his current situation and Bruus, Taseko kneeled down in front of a tree and began tracing his hands against the trunk.

He was looking for a small fungus that helps cure rheumatism, which is slowly taking over the graceful movement of his clan leader, Keshin.

The problem with that task was that the mushrooms he needed were the same color as the tree it was growing on, meaning that if he wanted to find one he'll have to feel all over the tree until he feels something softer under his fingers.

It usually took hours to no end before he finally found one in the size, he needed and that irritated the man just as much as his sensei's so called _reason_ to choose him for the task.

Apparently he spent too much time meditating in his room and his fellow teammates were _worried_ about him.

Taseko snorted and made his way to the next tree.

 _Yeah, right_. He thought bitterly. _Those ninja-wannabe's simply needed somebody to do the boring task for them, that's all._ The second tree he examined had a little bit of the mushroom he needed, but the fungus itself was way too small to qualify for any healing experiments. Which meant he was back at square number one.

Or at least he _would_ be if a giant horse didn't appear out of nowhere and threaten to stomp him to death.

"Woah! Woah! Easy there big fella." The ninja jumped back a bit when the panicked horse stood up on its hind legs and began wavering his front ones up and down, wanting noting more than to hit the black-clad man in the head with them.

"Easy, easy now, big guy." Taseko cooed, his tone comforting and calm. He didn't want to scare the horse beyond what it already was. Not taking his eyes of the frightened animal, he mentioned for his own stallion to back away to a safer distance. "I'm not going to hurt you, I promise." But the large, cream colored horse was beyond listening. As the man's hand came closer to its muzzle to catch the rains, it tugged its head out of reach and stood up again. Heeding whoever that was on its back from the black-clad man.

It wasn't going to let the human hurt its rider, no matter what.

Taseko was getting irritated by the horse's behavior, but couldn't really blame the stallion for it. After all the years he spent baby-siting Bruus, he learned that horses usually act that way when they're trying to protect their young or something they consider as their little ones.

This cream colored, larger-than-most horse was franticly trying to protect whoever that was curled on its back, from the world around it. Even if parts of that world didn't want to hurt his charge, such as Taseko.

The man could see that the animal was hurt. Having long, thin scratches decorating its chest and legs that looked to straight and precise to be made by a tree branch.

Taseko felt his chest tighten upon that revelation. There was an orc attack in the elven king's realm.

And that fool probably didn't even know about it.

Without even thinking, the shinobi snatched the rains and pulled the horse's head down his other hand placed between the shocked animal's eyes, rubbing the horse's muzzle and whispering words of comfort.

Slowly but surely the animal began to calm down at the sound of the masked man's voice and reassuring touch. Once it relaxed enough to not bottle the moment Taseko released his grip on the restrains, the man slowly made his way to the animal's side petting it comfortingly.

"That's right, big fella. Nice and calm." He repeated the words until his glowed hands touched something that wasn't the saddle or the blanket beneath it.

It was a leg.

A tiny one, that of a young child.

Taseko looked up and saw a small figure pressed against the horse's large neck, shaking slightly and quiet sobs escaping its lips. The boy's head was hidden beneath the stallion's great yellow mane, effectively hiding the child's face from view.

"And what do we have here?" He spoke quietly, gently. Just like he did with the horse. Reaching out a hand he moved away part of the yellowish mane.

The ninja paled at the sight before him.

He saw a young boy that was about five-years-old, long blond hair, big blue eyes looking at him with fear and…pointy ears.

A part of him was scared by the child's age. _Surely he must have come along with his mother or father, right?_ Taseko thought, looking deeply into the large blue orbs and smiling reassuringly. _But there is nobody with him and that means…oh, dear Valar._

To witness the death of his parents at such a young age…

The shinobi shook his head.

 _What did this poor Little One do, to deserve such a faith?_

The second part of him was more concerned about the youngling's ears.

This boy was an elf or, if he wanted to be posh about it, an elfling.

One that had a surprising resemblance to king of the Woodland realm himself, but that might have been due to the fact that they both had blonde hair and blue eyes.

 _Is this how you protect your people, Elven King Thranduil?_ Taseko though angrily though his face showed no indication that he's angry. _Allowing little elflings to watch their parents die, because none of your ever-present patrols were there, when they were needed most?_ Despite the anger rising in his heart them man continued to smile gently at the young soul before him.

"Hello, Little One." He spoke softly, his eyes cringing in a fake smile. "Can you tell me what your name is?"

The boy didn't answer, only stared at him with horror-struck eyes. "Y-Your f-face." A small voice squeaked.

That's when the man realized the child had probably never seen a mask such as the one he wore, and was probably terrified that the human before him didn't have half of his face.

"Oh, this?" He pointed at the black, mask. "It's just a mask, Young One." With one swift movement he junked the material down, revealing the long scar that went from his left eye all the way through his face and chin. "See? Nothing to be afraid of." He smiled.

The boy smiled back though it was hesitant and didn't last long. Soon the big blue eyes widened again and began looking around fanatically. "W-Where a-am, I-I? Where is Nana? S-She was r-right b-behind me…where is Nana?" Not receiving any answer from the ninja, they boy continued looking around calling for his 'Nana', before turning to the horse he was riding.

"Esthrebien." He sobered pulling on the yellow mane. "We have to go back for her, Esthrebien!" But the cream colored horse didn't respond to the boy's pulls. "She could be hurt by those mean creatures! Turn back, Esthrebien! Turn back!" The child was screaming now, his little heart breaking right in front of Taseko. Soon the elfling stopped crying and simply buried his head into the horse's mane, crying loudly.

Not being able to stand and do nothing no longer, the ninja pulled the boy into a tight embrace which the child returned with equal strength.

"Shhh…Shhh…Little One. It's alright…Shhh…"Taseko knew he was lieing, but the boy needed reassurance. Even if it was fake.

"T-This is all my fault." The boy wept, his voice muffled by the ninja's leather armor. "I-If only I waited… If only I l-listened to Ada…"

"No, no, no Little One. Don't think that." The shinobi rubbed circles around the child's back comfortingly, the last thing the child needed was to blame himself for something he didn't do. "Nothing that happened was your fault, Young One." He then gently pulled the child so that he can look him in the eyes but the elfling didn't look back at him, only wiped his glassy, blue eyes with his sleeve. "Never believe anybody who tells you otherwise, do you understand me Little One?" The boy nodded but didn't meet his gaze, probably to ashamed.

Taseko's heart melted at the sight of tears falling down the chubby cheeks.

No one that young should be carrying the weight of such guilt.

Nobody that young should live knowing that their beloved mother died, because of a stupid mistake.

 _Where were you when this little boy needed you, Thranduil?_ The ninja thought, concentrating all his anger not at the orcs that did the deed, but at the incapable king that had all the power he needed to prevent and yet did _nothing_. _Absolutely_ nothing _. Where were you?!_

He knew that, even if the infamous elven king was able to hear his angry questions, he wouldn't answer.

 _I have to go check on the battle scene_. He thought, hugging the boy. _There might be a slight chance that the mother survived_. Again he pulled away from the boy and this time he pulled the child's chin up so that he can look into those blue eyes, filled with grief. _And even if she didn't…I'll avenge her for you, Little One. I promise you, those filthy creatures won't see the next sunrise._

"Listen to me now, Little One." He said, his voice gentle but commanding. "I'm going to back, to see if there's any orcs left. I want you to stay here with Esthrebien and my horse, Bruus." To prove his point, he whistled for his auburn horse to return. "Can you do this for me, Young One?"

The child looked up at the man he barely knew and, for a split second, Taseko thought he saw worry in them before they filled up with grief and the elfling nodded.

Taking that for his permission to leave, the shinobi gave the boy one last tight squeeze and turned away towards the direction from which the cream colored horse first appeared.

Placing his mask back on his face and he was about to take of in a chakra-enhanced run, when…

He felt something soft nudge him in the shoulder.

Taseko turned around to meet two large, amber orbs of his stallion gazing at him with worry.

Sighting, the man placed a glowed hand on Bruus's muzzle.

"You better take care of the boy till I return, Bruus." He whispered softly, pressing his forehead to that of the horse. "Or my earlier threat will come very much true. I've been dyeing for some good horse meat for some time now." He said, his voice deadly serious.

With that said, he leaped into the trees.

#Five hours later:

"I sent you out to look for mushrooms and you return to me with an orphan?" Taseko watched his leader's eyebrow rise. The room they were currently in was dark, gloomy and altogether unpleasant for those who are used to places that have more light in them.

The large man was sitting behind a large oak desk in the middle of the said room, his icy-blue eyes glaring at his soldier and his face twisting into a grimace underneath his dark mask.

At the sound of the man's booming, angry voice the boy pressed himself closer to the green eyed shinobi's pant leg, weeping quietly.

"That is correct, Master." Taseko's words held no regret to his decision. He knew he did the right thing. The boy needed a place to live for both his parents were confirmed dead and he was too young to be left alone to fend for himself.

If Master Keshin disagreed with his action, that was okay.

Taseko could take _any_ punishment the elder man threw at him, as long as the child stays.

"Is there a particular reason you choose to bring the boy here, instead of dropping him of in some orphanage?" The leader of asked leaning back on his chair and pressing his fingers together on top of his chest.

The green eyed ninja blinked.

The dyeing mother's last words echoed in his head…

# _Flashback:_

 _It didn't take long for the ninja to find the battlefield._

 _The stench of orc blood could lead a blind man to it with no problem._

 _The ground surrounding the dead bodies was covered in dry, black pools of the substance accompanied by broken tree's and flies buzzing above the older bodies._

 _Taseko walked carefully between the fallen monsters, not wanting to stain his clean, black, leather shoes with orc blood and other body fluids._

 _A groan was heard by his left._

 _It was an orc. Barely alive, his chest heaving to get enough air to the shutting-down lungs._

 _For a second, the shinobi considered giving the Valar forsaken creature a quick and painless death. But then the image of the crying boy flashed before his eyes and he decided against it._

 _That abomination deserves every minute of the pain it's getting, for attacking a defenseless elleth and her child, as well as ridding a young elfling from his mother._

 _Pushing through bodies, he searched for any signs of an elf._

 _He was about to give up when, his sharp eyes spotted a handful of pail-blonde hair from beneath one of the wargs, that accompanied the vile creatures._

 _After that it was just a matter of time before he had the poor elleth in his arms._

 _She was beautiful even with her face and warrior-dress covered in thick red-black blood. A large stab wound decorating her thin torso as well as numerous scratches ripping apart the delicate, pail skin._

 _Taseko supported her head on his right arm as she struggled to breathe._

 _"W-Where…is…my son?" Despite his heightened senses, the green eyed shinobi could barely hear the softly spoken words._

 _"He's safe now, my lady." He spoke gently, stroking the elleth's pail blond hair to keep her awake. "He's okay. Nothing happened to him. He's safe."_

 _"S-Safe." She whispered. "L-Legolas…s-safe. G-Good." She opened her eyes and glassy, gentle amber eyes looked into his own grass-green ones. "P-Promise me you'll…keep him safe. D-Don't let him be…alone. N-Never let him be…consumed by…grief and guilt. Tis was not…his fault."_

 _"I won't, I promise." Taseko vowed, squeezing the elleth's hand firmly._

 _The female elf smiled gently, her eyes fluttering._

 _"T-Tell my king…t-that I love…him." And with that the elleth passed away in Taseko's arms._

 _The ninja lowered his head and prayed over the soul of this unfortunate mother, who will never watch her child grow up before picking up the body and digging a hole under the largest tree around and burying the lady._

 _Once that was over he pulled out a scroll and a piece of coal, and began scribing something on said paper. After a minute, he finished writing and stuck his masterpiece on the tree trunk with one of his shuriken stars, in hopes that somebody will find that note and notify the elleth's family and friends._

 _With one last silent good-bye to the fallen warrior, Taseko turned on his heels and sprinted to where he left a boy and two horses._

 _#End of Flashback:_

"Well?" The impatient voice of Keshin-sensei pulled the green eyes shinobi out of his thoughts.

He blinked before focusing on his former mentor's icy-blue eyes.

"I made a promise, Keshin-san." He answered seriously, placing a hand over the blonde elflings head. "And I intend on keeping it."

"No matter what I say?"

"No matter what you say."

The leader sighted and rubber his hurting temples.

There has not been a child in the temple for _years_ now. He didn't know if he and his fellow shinobi can handle one anymore.

He looked at the small child hugging Taseko's pant leg and looking up at him with curiosity.

His senses told him the child has a surprising amount of chakra (a spiritual energy that was dying out in Middle Earth) in his system.

More than enough to become one of them.

A ninja.

If the boy really was meant to be a shinobi, then his natural skills as an elf would make him a valuable ally to whatever side he chooses to take.

A grand opportunity like this should not be tossed aside, but it was the younglings own choice whenever he wants to end this chapter of his life and start a new one or return to Mirkwood and his kin.

Sighting again he raise his eyes to meet that of his former student.

"Very well, Taseko-san." He said. "The boy might stay…if he wants to."

The green eyed ninja nodded and kneeled before the boy.

"Listen to me, Little One." Taseko started and the elfling looked up at him. "I can take you back to the land of elves, where you will be raised among other…special elflings." The boy looked down, already not liking that option very much. He didn't want to be with 'other special elflings', he wanted to be with his Ada. Unfortunately, his Adar was always too busy to be with him. "Or…you can have a new family, here with me."

The boy's eyes sparkled at that. A small smile spread across the small face before fading.

"Would Nana want me to stay with you?" The boy asked, shyly looking up at the taller man.

Taseko smiled brightly.

"Yes. Your Nana would want you to be happy, Legolas."

The boy nodded, not realizing that this was the first time the man has spoken to him, using his real name.

"I will stay here." The child decided, his baby-blue eyes glassy from all the tears they shed.

"Very well then." Keshin stood up from his desk and walked up to the man and elfling.

Once he was in front of the child he softened his gaze.

"Kneel before me, Legolas of Mirkwood." He spoke, his voice gentle let commanding.

The five-year-old looked up at Taseko, not sure if he was supposed to do what the larger man said.

The green eyed ninja's only response was a gentle push on the child's back.

A minute later, little Legolas was kneeling before Keshin, his head bowed respectfully just like his mentors taught him back at home, whenever he was supposed to meet his Ada in the crown room.

The leader of the Shinobi Clan kneeled before the elfling and pulled his mask down, reveling his gently smiling face to the scared child, before placing both his hands on the blond head.

"Legolas of Mirkwood. Since you've accepted joining our league, I shall now give you a new name. It will be a symbol of the beginning of your training as a ninja and shinobi, as well as a 'farewell' to the old life you left behind." He then lifted his hands of the young head and stood up.

"Good bye, Legolas of Mirkwood. Rise Raion, the Black Lion of Arda."


	2. Chapter 2

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 2

"A promise meant to be kept."

Time went by and the elven guard of Mirkwood finally found the bodies of the orcs that attacked their queen, but could find no trace of her body or the royal child she was riding with.

Fearing that the only heir to the throne of their kingdom was dead along with his mother, the soldiers dreaded returning to the king's palace. The crime was committed during their shift and they had no doubt Thranduil will punish them for not being fast enough, to save at least one of his relatives. Whoever planned the attack was well prepared, making sure that his move was made when the patrol was nowhere in sight.

Vowing to not return to the palace until the whereabouts of the princeling were discovered, since there was no body among the orcs and wargs, the pluton split up and began searching the forest.

It took them two days to spot the small, silver shuriken gleaming from between the tree branches, along with Taseko's letter. The leader of the small pluton decided to leave the message un-read, claiming that only the king had the rights to lay his eyes on the paper that concerned his loved ones.

The road home was quiet, occasionally broken by a few sobs that escaped the loyal warrior's lips for the death of their beloved queen and the disappearance of Arda's last elfling.

To the soldiers, this was the day the forest fully deserved the name "Mirkwood". For there was nothing "great" or "green" in it, anymore.

All the elves could see…was red.

#In the palace:

There wasn't anything spectacular about the letter that Taseko left behind. Just a couple of words written in the common language, scribed into existence by the use of coal on a rather commonly used material.

But to Thranduil it became the soul reason he still lives and breathes.

The crowned elf could stare at the paper for hours, eyes barely closing. His grief-stricken mind slowly reading the last sentence of the letter, over and over again.

After the dreadful news about his queen, this last sentence was all that kept him from joining his beloved in the Halls of Mandos and leaving his people without a leader.

The whole message was about the burial place of the queen of Mirkwood, Leanna, though the writer didn't seem to know about the elleth's social status, referring to her as "elleth of the Woodland realm" and only the last part concerned Thranduil's son.

It only had eight words:

 _To whoever it may concern: The boy lives._

Those eight words were like honey on his broken heart and rays of sunshine in the darkness that has become his life.

Legolas. His only child is alive, growing up somewhere with people he _shouldn't_ be with…

But at least he was _safe_.

Safe from the cruelty of living alone and fending for himself, safe from facing his mother's death on his own…

Safe from a father that didn't give him enough attention.

A large pang of pure _guilt_ hit his chest and, not for the first time, the king wished he'd done things differently as his mind ventured back to the last moment he saw both of them alive…

 _# Flashback:_

 _Thranduil was just about to enter the conference room when-_

 _"Ada! Ada!" A tiny voice yelled, accompanied by the sound of footsteps on the royal floors. Soon the proud king of the woodland realm felt small hands wrap around his leg in a tight hug. With a sight he looked down at the grinning elfling, his face as impassive as ever and eyes glaring disapprovingly._

 _Seeing the look on his father's face, Legolas pulled away from his leg with a sad look on his youthful face and bowed respectfully._

 _"Forgive me, my Lord." The princeling's voice as serious and official as that of a five-year-old could be, making the stone mask on Thranduil's face waiver a little. "I let my emotions get the better of me. It will not happen again." As he went through the well-known sentence taught to him by both his nanny's and mother, little Legolas didn't look up at his father_ once. _Knowing that, even if he did, all he would see was that stone, unimpressed façade his Adar always wore around him._

 _Sighting quietly at his son's inability to look up at him, Thranduil decided to get straight to the point. His meeting with the Mirkwood elders was already supposed to begin and he can't come in late with the explanation that his elfling wanted to show him another picture._

 _"Is there something you wanted, Prince Legolas?" The king could see the youngling flinch under the rough formality in his voice that was so different from the soft 'Ion-Nin', his mother used._

 _"I-I…me and Nana are going for a ride after dessert." The child blurred out, shyly. "And I was wondering if…you'd like to join us?" For the first time today Thranduil's icy-blue eyes, met soft light-blue._

 _The king couldn't help but sight in irritation. When will Legolas finally learn that he can't spend a lot of time with him? He is a king of a large kingdom and, as much as he hated it, he cannot allow his son to distract him from his duties._

 _Though, perhaps, he shouldn't blame the boy for wanting to be close to his father. After all when he was a mere elfling, he felt roughly the same way about his relationship with Oropher._

 _But that's what made his father such a good king, the ability to distance himself from all distractions and concentrate solely on his duty as king._

 _Even though Thranduil knew he'll never be half of the great king Oropher had been, he continued to follow his Adar's footsteps when it came to his life as king._

 _And that included separating himself from Legolas, until the prince is old enough to master his own weapon. Only then, when the boy proves his maturity, Thranduil will step in to teach him everything about being a king so that he'll be ready to take over when the time comes._

 _Just like Oropher did with him._

 _"I'm afraid, I can't come with you and your Nana, Prince Legolas." He didn't bother giving the five-year-old an explanation, it's not like the boy could understand politics at that age._

 _With big, light-blue eyes filled with disappointment and sadness, the princeling nodded his head sniffing back tears. "I understand, my king." Legolas spoke, his voice more emotionless than it should be given his age. "I apologize for keeping you from your duties. It will not happen again."_

 _Thranduil didn't know it at the time but, indeed, it won't._

 _With a wave of dismissal, the proud king of Mirkwood turned his head around towards the door but was not fast enough to miss the disapproval in his wife's eyes, as the beautiful elleth picked up the crying child and whispered soft, comforting words into his ear._

 _"Don't cry, my little Leaf." Opening the closed door, Thranduil heard the small smile on her face as she spoke. "Your Ada is just grumpy because he has to listen to other people whine about their problems, whenever he enters that room." A quiet sniff was heard coming from the small child in Leanna's arms.  
"Come now, my sweet prince. Let me get that desert for you and we can go see Esthrebien in the stables. I'm sure that pesky horse will be more than happy to have just the two of us on his back, instead of you, me and your fat father." A soft giggle erupted from Legolas and Thranduil turned around to glare at his wife, ears turning red at the comment. _

_Leanna just closed her eyes and stuck her tongue out at him, before turning around and leaving the hall along with her bundle of joy._

 _Thranduil sighted, waited until the blush left his ears and entered the conference room._

 _# End of flashback:_

Tears threatening to fall, the proud king picked up another wine bottle from the floor and began emptying it of its contains, with the intensions of drowning the guilty thoughts that began swarming in his head:

 _If only I went with them that day…_

 _If only I wasn't so concentrated on his kingly duties…_

 _If only I wasn't such a soulless bastard towards my own son…_

With an angry "clank!" the empty bottle joined its brethren on the floor and another took its place in the elf king's hand.

But before Thranduil could fog his senses with more liquor, another's hand grabbed his tightly and began pulling the bottle away from the blonde elf's mouth.

"I believe you've had enough for now, mellon-nin." A voice well-known to him, stated gently before tearing the glass wine-container from Thranduil's grip. The king looked towards the source of the voice and could make out a pointy, gray hat and concerned, blue eyes.

"Mithrandir…" He breathed out softly, his face sporting the first genuine smile since that faithful day.

The figure smiled gently. "It is indeed I, old friend." The elder wizard's smile faded. "I came as soon as I heard. How are you feeling, Thranduil?" Concern was evident in the Isari's voice as he spoke, placing a comforting hand on the elf's shoulder.

The king looked back at the note he was holding in his other hand, acting as if he didn't even hear Gandalf's question.

"My wife is gone." He said, his normally strong, dominant voice quiet and defeated, pointing at the letter with his head.

"I know, mellon-nin." The gray wizard answered quietly, his heart thick with sorrow. Leanna was a very close friend of his. Her light-hearted, carefree character being the perfect opposite of Thranduil's, bringing a unique balance to their relationship.

"And yet my son lives." The king's lifeless eyes sparkled with emotion for a split-second before returning to their former state.

"That is fortunate." Gandalf stated, his hand squeezing the blonde's shoulder tighter. "You should be proud of him, mellon-nin. Not many elflings could survive an orc attack at his age." The information that the princeling survived, brought a wave of comfort to the wizard's hurting heart. He wouldn't be able to take it if the innocent youngling didn't survive either. Because, even though he knew both Thranduil and Leanna since they both were but young teenagers, his connection with their child was much deeper.

The little prince was like a grandson he never had, always dyeing to listen to one of his many stories and laughing merrily whenever he created fireworks with magic.

Little Legolas held a special place in Gandalf's heart and the child only secured his place there, the more time they spent together. And that happened quite often, precisely when Thranduil and Leanna wanted to spend a little time alone and needed somebody to take care of the elfling.

It happened _so_ often in fact, that the wizard became a father figure to Legolas. Even more so than Thranduil himself. Giving the child the love, the stubborn king of elves didn't give him.

Gandalf had no doubt that the small princeling will have a key role in defeating the darkness, that has been growing outside the Mirkwood borders.

Yes…young Thrandulion is indeed a special child and the fact that he survived the attack, only proved his importance to the future.

"I am proud, Mithrandir." The king's groggy voice pulled Gandalf out of his thoughts. "But he doesn't know that, you know." Thranduil said in a-matter-of-fact voice, his clouded eyes on the wizard's. "I never showed him how much I love him, how much he means to me and now…" Before the gray human could do anything, the blonde elf's hand shot to the right side of his throne and grabbed a full wine bottle and, after a small toast to the Isari, swung it to his mouth. "Now…now he's gone, probably forever. I'll never see him again in my life." With a pained whine that was very un-elf like, he pulled the bottle back to his mouth.

"You do not know that, Thranduil." Gandalf stated softly, once again pulling the bottle away. "The world has ways of fixing its mistakes, mellon-nin. I'm sure your son will be returned to you in one way or another."

The king sighted and locked his eyes with Gandalf's again.

"Can you promise me something, Mithrandir?"

"I can promise you anything, mellon-nin." The wizard smiled weakly. "It's keeping the promise that can be beyond my doing."

"Can you swear to me that, if you ever meet an elf that reminds you of my son, you will send him to me?" Thranduil looked up at Gandalf, from his spot in his throne, eyes sparkling with hope.

Seeing that, the gray Isari was instantly reminded of a small, missing elfling and he smiled.

"I promise, mellon-nin."


	3. Chapter 3

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 3

"The Horseless Horseshoe."

 _Date: A few days before the "Journey of the ring" begins._

 _Location: A village near Rohan._

"Remind me, why are we here again, Gandalf?" Aragorn asked looking at the large, oak inn they were currently about to enter.

The elderly wizard huffed at him as he tied his honey-colored stallion to the wooden pole near the building. "I already told you, Strider." Gandalf answered sounding more than a little annoyed with the ranger. "We're here to collect the ninth member of our fellowship."

"But why _do_ we need a ninth member, Mithrandir?" The future king of men pushed forward, not really understanding his friend's way of thinking. "I thought we were supposed to sneak in to Mordor and destroy the ring. We won't be able to do that with the amount of people your requesting us to take."

The younger man didn't understand why the wizard allowed so many people to escort Frodo to the cursed land. It was impractical and will only slowdown the overall progress but the stubborn Isari won't let them talk him out of it, insisting that they are _all_ needed for the task to be fulfilled. Though he wouldn't tell them their roles in accomplishing it (and seemed to particularly avoid answering the question if it was Boromir asking).

He knew why he had to go, since somebody had to lead the way. As a ranger experienced in navigating in the wild, he was the best option. His skills as a healer could also be highly useful during the journey, if anyone became injured or sick along the way.

He could see why Boromir should come with.

Aragorn, no matter how skilled with a sword he was, couldn't protect Frodo on his own. Another capable warrior would indeed increase their chances of reaching the Gates of Mordor, without being decapitated by orcs along the way. Not to mention his experience as a general will greatly help when difficult decisions will have to be made, and he young ranger will gladly share that responsibility with the Gondor warrior.

Another obvious participant was Gandalf himself.

The wizard was the most experienced warrior and member of their fellowship. He knew secret short-cuts and pass ways that even Aragorn didn't, the countless friendships he made during his immortal life and his access to magic only prove his importance to the fellowship. Without him the young ranger was sure they didn't have a chance.

Strider also understood why Sam had to go, as well.

Frodo, being the bearer of the ring, needed somebody to keep him from falling under the demonic object's influence. Having a well-known presence next to him would do a lot more than being surrounded by people he barely knew. Also the young hobbit knew how to cook and was very strong for a being his size. Sam wasn't there to add manpower, he was there for Frodo Baggins's mental support.

Then there was Gimli.

The ranger wouldn't mind the dwarf's company if Gimli wasn't as loud as a wounded elk. The Moria warrior couldn't stop himself from either boasting about how superior his race is compared to elves, or complaining about something as silly as a too big tunic. Despite all that, Aragorn could see the advantage of having a dwarf on their team. Were they forced to cross the dark caves of Moria, who better to lead them than a natural inhabitant? And the small man was a capable warrior who could prove to be very useful in during the journey. So all in all the dwarf was needed, though Aragorn wouldn't mind if he kept quiet for more than five minutes.

The six of them would be the perfect team: Small enough to avoid being spotted by orc patrols, and quick enough to get to Mordor as fast as possible.

They wouldn't need anybody else to accompany them on the journey, but then come the rest of the fellowship that were entirely unneeded and yet Gandalf agrees to let them go, despite Boromir's and Aragorn's protests. Such as the other two hobbits, Merry and Pippin.

Those two halflings were complete newbies when it came to being in the wild or in the middle of a battle, being mostly raised in the isolated, safe land of Shire. And that's precisely the problem. Both of the young hobbits are not experienced in fighting, long travels with limited food and sleep and acting in the wilderness. They were loud, slow and used to having everything within arm's reach. In simpler words: they were just dead weight placed on his, Boromir's and Gimli's backs and jet Gandalf still insisted on taking, for reasons he didn't care to explain.

Already they were probably the weirdest "fellowship" Arda ever had walking upon it. Three men, four hobbits and one dwarf. And the wizard insisted on traveling all the way to the countryside of Rohan, to the small inn they were going to enter, to get yet _another_ participant.

He snorted. The only thing missing in the jolly group, is an elf.

"Trust me, Aragorn." The Isari said, answering the younger human's question. "We're going to need all the help we can get to complete the given task and, believe me young Elrondion, you'll be grateful for his company more than once in this journey." Gandalf than smiled at him and picked up his hand to place it on the round, wooden doorknob.

The ranger sighted. "If you say so, old friend." He said, his right hand curling around the handle of his trusty sword. Inns weren't the safest places to be around in the middle of the night, especially ones that have a world-wide reputation of having criminals and bounty hunters as their regular clients. "So…who are we looking for?"

Aragorn watched as the wise wizard's hand froze mid-twist. "Pardon?"

"The person we're looking for, does he have a name?"

Gandalf snorted at the question. "Of course he does Aragorn, everybody has a name. What kind of question is that?"

"I know that!" Strider half-screamed. "I just wanted to know who, I'm supposed to ask around for. The search will be much easier if you just tell me the name of our target."

"Ahh…well you see, Aragorn here's the problem. I do not know his name, his race nor have I ever met him in person."

 _That_ made the ranger stop.

"Wait…are you saying that you _don't know_ , who the ninth member is?" He asked, looking wide-eyed at a person that gave the impression of knowing _everything_.

Gandalf nodded his conformation. "All I know for certain is that he's going to be here, in this inn. The rest is shielded from me."

"How in the Valar, are we supposed to find someone if we don't even know what he looks like?!"

The wizard shrugged. "I can't always know everything, Aragorn." A small pause later and the ranger could swear he heard his companion mutter something like: "At least we know it's a male."

Aragorn decided to ignore the elder man's comment and began pushing the Isari through the door, before he ended up doing something stupid.

Their entrance was announced with a particularly loud bell that was attached to the doorframe, and rang whenever somebody opened the door.

Nearly everyone in the building turned around to see who came and more than ninety percent of them let out disappointed grunts, once they realized that neither Aragorn nor Gandalf were the person they were expecting.

The younger human was confused about their reaction while the elder ignored it, instead calling out to the barman in the bar in front of them.

"Benvin, old friend!" The said man looked up from the glass he was polishing and graced them with a warm smile.

"Well if it isn't Gandalf the Gray." He called out, his voice a smooth baritone. "I haven't seen you in this part of Rohan, since Tintin's tenth birthday!" His laugh was joined by a few others. "Come in, come in! Make yourself comfortable." He waived them over with his large hand. "I'll just ask Aida to take over and I'll join you in just a minute."

With a smile and a quiet nod, Gandalf let himself and Aragorn inside.

Almost all of the tables were full with small exceptions: the one nearest to the window with the sign: "reserved" on it, and the one closest to the bar.

Given no other choice, the two newcomers settled in the second option and Aragorn took the time, they were wasting on waiting for the barman, to have a quick look around.

There wasn't anything spectacular about 'The horseless Horseshoe'. It looked like every other inn the future king of Gondor saw many times in his life.

The room was large and surprisingly comfy, the windows have a clear view on the outside city and the solid wood walls keeping the body warmth of its customers inside with ease.

The people occupying the other tables, were all carrying weapons strapped to their belts and they looked at him with untrusting eyes. It seemed like everybody around here, knew each other and every newcomer is granted their fair share of distrust until they prove to be trustworthy.

And that was a wise policy, which only criminals and outlaws possess. They can't risk their little heaven being discovered by Rohan soldiers and them going to jail for illegal activities.

Aragorn kept his eyes on the smooth surface of the table. It was best not to look to suspicious in places like this, surrounded by elite murders and insane criminals that all form a large brotherhood and will have their backs just in case. And the young ranger already managed to get a few dirty looks from a couple of men sitting behind him and Gandalf.

These people weren't sure about him, and that automatically made him a threat. If it wasn't for the wizard sitting beside him, he'd definitely be cornered and beat up, at some point during their stay here. That knowledge did nothing to ease his already tense muscles.

"Relax, Strider." Gandalf's calm voice instructed. "As long as you don't do anything foolish, we should be fine."

"Define 'foolish'." Aragorn asked sarcastically. What? Did the wizard think he'll go around punching people in the nose, the minute he turns his back on him? That'd be a first.

"Strider~" The wizards started with a warning tone in his voice.

"Kidding, kidding." Putting his hands up in mock surrender the ranger grinned at Gandalf, who simply rolled his eyes.

Not long after that, the friendly barman, Benvin, made a reappearance.

He looked like every typical barman Aragorn saw to many times to count. Short black hair, bushy mustache of the same color, warm cheerful green eyes, all while being a bit more round than most of the man he served.

He and Gandalf embraced themselves in a friendly hug and, after a brief introduction, Benvin sat down across to Aragorn.

"So, old friend." The barman smiled. "What brings you here so early this year?" He cocked his head to the side. "Did you confuse the dates again, old timer?" He laughed. "Aida's birthday isn't until the next full moon and Tintin won't be having his, till spring time."

"I know that." Gandalf protested, trying to sound offended. "I have the birthday dates of your children written down in my notebook, thank you. And that's _not_ the reason I'm here, Benvin."

"Well then, if that's so." The barman smiled, leaning back in his seat. "How can I be of service, dear Gandalf?"

The wizard took out his pipe and lit up the nicotine inside it, from the candle lieing on the table. "I'm looking for someone who could accompany and protect, me and Strider here," He pointed at the younger human besides him, who was trying and failing to kill an irritating fly, with his pipe. "on a very important quest."

Benvin blinked. "You mean like a mercenary? An assassin for hire?"

Gandalf nodded, puffing circles with smoke. "Well…perhaps that's not the right word to call it. 'Bodyguard' fits the description much better."

"Well, I can openly say we've got the best ones around here." The round man presented his customers with a wave of his right hand. "Just tell me where you're heading and I'm sure, I can find somebody interested in taking the offer. Even if the job is not something these boys do on a daily basis, there is nothing a guy can't do for money."

Somehow, no matter how confident Benvin sounded, Aragorn doubted a lot of those men would agree to go with them once they hear the name of the destination.

"We're heading to Mordor, Benvin." The wizard said, his voice so grave that even some of the talking men quieted down at the sound of the cursed name.

The barman nodded, rubbing his chin. "Mordor you say…" He muttered to himself as if deep in though.

Both Aragorn and Gandalf nodded in conformation.

"That…could be a problem." Benvin said, still thinking.

"Why? Nobody's brave enough to venture that far into the dark lands?" The ranger asked, his tone laughable.

"None of these lad are, young Strider." The barman agreed. "But there is _one_ person I know, who would face Smaug without batting an eye, if he had to. Even infiltrated Dol Guldur a couple of times, to kill a few orcs that were getting under his skin. Yes, that lad ain't afraid of no Mordor." He started and his listeners brightened up at that.

"Well if he's the only one available, what seems to be the problem?" Aragorn asked urgently, wanting to quickly leave this inn and be on his way to Rivendell as fast as possible.

"You see Strider, the lad ain't good with people." Ben said solemnly. "He usually doesn't approach another sentient being unless he really has to." He gestured to the empty table placed under the window. "This inn is one of the only places you can see him among other people. On other occasions he's either hunting in the nearby forest or training in his temple on one of the Edoras mountains."

"So…the only person qualified for the task…is socially awkward?" Aragorn asked.

"Not 'socially awkward', young Strider." Benvin corrected. "'Afraid of attachments' is a _much_ better name for what ails him."

"If he's so afraid of connecting with others-" Gandalf started, looking at the strange shapes coming out of his mouth. "How did you come to be friends with him, Ben?"

The chubby barman laughed. "I wish, I could claim that achievement for myself my friend but I'm afraid it was not of my doing." He mentioned with his hand and a young blonde haired girl walked up to them with three cups of beer. "No. That was the work of my grand-grandfather. After the lad saved him from a group of orcs, my grand-grandpa managed to pay him back with a bit of social skills, so that he won't hide in the shadows whenever he enters the inn, and an eternal on-the-house-meal."

"Wait a minute there." Aragorn started, a detail catching his attention. "You said, your grand- _grandfather_ managed to befriend him." Benvin nodded. "But if that's indeed true then either the man you talk about is really old or he's not a man at all."

Ben smiled at him. "Your right, Strider. He's not a man, but he doesn't believe he's an elf, either." The barman laughed at the bewildered expressions on both Gandalf's and Aragorn's faces. "To fully understand the way he thinks, you'd have to meet him and somehow get him to open up to you, which is no easy task I must say. That youngster is more locked up than a treasure chest, in one of the dwarf safes."

Just then the annoying fly from before, decide to return and continue to annoy poor Aragorn with its buzzing.

The ranger was just about to end the insects suffering with his hand, when a long, sharp, metal object flew through the air and landed directly in the fly's torso. Pinning the poor thing to the wooden surface and scaring Aragorn half to death.

The metal object looked like a long needle, which looked sharp enough to penetrate an enemy armor and dig deep into the body, if thrown correctly.

Aragorn was staring at it white as a sheet, Gandalf was looking at it curiously while the barman just smiled at a figure occupying the table beneath the window.

"Ah, Raion!" Ben greeted, waving the unseen man over. "Glad you could join us! Come right over, these gentlemen have a job for you."

And that's when Aragorn realized...

He didn't hear the bell.


	4. Chapter 4

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 4

"Mission objections."

Slowly and a bit stiffly Aragorn turned around to face the person with whom he'll, hopefully, travel from now on, his body still tense with shock, surprise and fear from the unsuspected assault on his hand.

The man sitting in the 'reserved' table was gazing down at a piece of paper, as if he didn't hear Benvin greeting him from two tables away. Holding a scalding cup of what he assumed to be tea, one of his legs resting atop of the other and his right hand twirling another large, metal needle in such speed that it formed a blurry, silver circle in his palm.

He was dressed in a black cloak-like armor, that stuck to his body like a second skin and allowed full flexibility, unlike the ones humans and elves use that were entirely made of metal. With a lot of pockets located around his legs, torso and back. What occupied them, Aragorn could only guess.

Such as the hilts of two swords sticking from behind the stranger's back. The said blades looked nothing like the one he himself was carrying.

Instead of having a normal round pommel, a lean grip, a cross-guar and a chappy like every sword in Middle Earth, these twin blades had a longer handle cloaked in some sort of sword wrap and square shaped hand protector. The rest of the unique blades was covered by the man's back, which was unfortunate since the young Ranger would like nothing more than to see the blades in full glory.

Aside from the strange camouflage armor, the figure had the lower part of his face covered with a mask of the same color and his forehead was protected by a dark-blue bandana, separating the short, black spikes that was his hair from hitting his eyes.

Though the newcomer showed no acknowledgment to Benvin's greeting and invitation, the barman seemed unfazed by his behavior.

"What have I told you about sneaking in without a proper greeting?" The elder human said, waving a finger at the newcomer as if he was reprimanding a naughty child. "And what took you so long to arrive here, anyway?" Ben then looked out the window. "Usually you're here before the sunsets!"

"I arrived according to my usual timing, Benvin-san." The voice that came out from behind the black mask surprised Aragorn, instead of being rough, scratchy with a husky tone, it was gentle, smoothing and almost melodic. As if it was specially made to sing songs so beautiful that they would melt the coldest of hearts, completely unfitting to the otherwise dangerous looking person it belonged to. "You just didn't see me."

The barman sighed and shook his head, muttering something about 'infuriating ninjas'. "One day you're going to tell me _exactly_ how you keep avoiding the doorbell, every time you enter my inn." Aragorn could swear to _Valar,_ that he saw the lips behind that mask twitch into a smile. "But right now my two companions have a mission for you, so come over here and get acquainted."

The ranger stared wide-eyed as the taller figure sighted and, after slowly rising from his seat, made his way over to them. Without making so much a sound during the whole journey, despite the fact that he had two giant, fork-like swords strapped to his dark-blue belt, along with a couple of strange throwing knives tied together with a string.

Frowning, Aragorn kept his gaze on the warrior.

For someone who claimed to not have a single drop of elven blood flowing in his veins, he moved more silently than any of the elves he came to know. Including Glorfindel, his adoptive father, Elladan, Elrohir and Haldir who could be _insanely_ silent when the situation called for it.

For a second he wondered if the warrior could sneak on a doe feeding her young, being as silent as he was but quickly dismissed the idea as childish.

"Gandalf, young Strider." The barman's voice pushed him out of his thoughts, making him focus his attention on the older human. "Let me introduce you to one of my family's oldest friends, Raion of the Western Temple."

The man in question smiled with his eyes and gave them a salute with his right hand. "Yo."

Gandalf stood up and returned the smile. "A pleasure to meet you, Raion." The wizard then extended his hand which the warrior gladly, if not a bit hesitantly, took. "I am Gandalf the Gray and this, fine fellow over here is my companion, Strider." Aragorn briefly caught the other warrior's eyes, as he raised to greet him.

They were colored in such a pail blue the ranger swore they were once a nice _light_ blue, before somebody decided to vanquish all the color from them.

"The pleasure is all mine, Strider-san." Raion spoke, nodding his head in a greeting. The ranger realized, quite displeased, that the black clad man was a few inches taller than him. Not by much but the future king of Gondor rarely had the honor of being taller in Lord Elrond's realm, with all the elves surrounding him being at least a _bit_ taller because of their superior race, and cherished greatly every time he found himself be bigger than a fellow human.

But, since their new companion was _definitely_ not human (just because he hid the pointy parts of his ears under a headband, doesn't change the fact that he's an elf), he supposed he shouldn't feel to discouraged. There are races and fellow humans smaller than him, after all.

Nodding to Raion's greeting Aragorn followed Gandalf's lead and sat down, Raion seemed to be perfectly fine standing before Ben pulled him down by the sleeve of his cloth armor.

"Don't be rude, Reo." He scowled clasping a large hand on the younger one's shoulder, as if to make sure he won't leave. "Besides, these are fine lads. They won't bite you."

The ranger had to force down a smile at the bright blush that appeared on the uncovered part of Raion's face, as the said man tried to hide his embarrassment from his voice.

"I know they won't _bite_ me, Senpai." Raion managed to grumble out. "It's just that…I've been sitting for a long time now, both on saddle and in my usual chair and my limbs seemed a bit more comfortable with standing at the moment."

The barman rolled his eyes. "Of _course_ they _do_ , Reo." He gave the younger man a knowing glance. "And I _didn't_ see you barely a week ago, hunched over in the trees in a sitting position for nearly the entire day, without moving so much a muscle. Your limbs didn't bother you much _then_ , now did they?"

Aragon heard Raion snort. "I was on a mission back then, Senpai and it required complete stillness from my body in order to be completed. I couldn't let the orcs targeting your inn know I'm there so they can just shoot me down the minute they arrive, now could I? So that doesn't count."

"Oh?" Ben looked doubtful. "So the belief that you simply don't like getting too close to people because that the _ninja way_ , is a false on-"

"-And speaking of _missions._ " The younger looking man chose that moment to cut the innkeeper off with both word and a cold glare. "My Senpai here, mentioned you have one for me, Gandalf-san." He spoke with an undisturbed calmness, sounding as if he _didn't_ hear the wizard speak about the destination they were heading towards, just a few minutes ago.

Gandalf smiled at the young elf before him, puffing a stream of smoke through his nose. "That is correct, my friend."

"I would like to know the details of this mission, before I agree to anything." Raion said looking deeply into the Isari's light-blue eyes.

"A wise policy." The wizard nodded, agreeing. "What would you like to know?"

"Firstly, the amount of time it's going to take." Raion stated, pulling the silver needle out of the table and polishing it with a black cloth he pulled out from his backpack. "I may be free for the time being but that can't stay so, for too long. I'm needed here. The people of this village are constantly plagued by orcs and goblins trying to steal food and, occasionally, even children." The elf then lifted the smooth needle up to the light and watched the candlelight reflect of the smooth metal. "Their men have never faced the cruelty of war and the only life they ever took is that of a deer or a rabbit, mainly because this place is so small it's mostly overlooked by the king of Rohan, whenever he calls men to join his army so there was no need for them to learn swordsmanship." Satisfied by his work, the dark haired warrior placed the needle in one of his leg pockets where, Aragorn assumed, it belonged. "As you can see then, I am these people's only line of defense when it comes to invaders that do not mean well."

Both the wizard and the ranger nodded, that question was not one that will make Raion reconsider joining them. They were always hurrying with the Ringwraith's constantly getting closer to Frodo's location than everyone would like.

Aragorn suspected that their fast pace (slowed down a bit by Marry and Pippin) in which they planned to travel, will satisfy the strange elf.

"We suspect our overall journey to take about six months in total." Aragorn answered picking up his untouched beer. "But there is a large chance that we will have to go faster."

As the elf thought through the new information, both the ranger and the wizard waited patiently for his next question.

"How many more people will be going with us?"

"We will regroup in Rivendell with six other party members, why?"

The non-elf shrugged. "Just curious." Sensing there was more to it, none of the humans spoke. With a sight Raion continued. "As my Senpai already informed you, my usual line of work are solo missions." His voice then lowered to a whisper. "This one will be the first group mission I had in years."

Having a wage feeling that this was a sensitive subject, Aragorn swiftly changed it.

"Any other questions?"

"Just one: What will be my objection during this task?"

This time it was Gandalf that answered. "I believe that your role in this mission will be much easier, than the ones you've previously encountered." The wizard said taking in a large intake from his pipe. "Your objection will be to simply ensure that we reach our destination without getting separated, caught or, if it's in your power to prevent it, hurt."

The unnaturally pale-blue eyes, blinked. "I'm supposed to be a… _babysitter_?"

Aragorn nearly chocked on his liquor trying to suppress a chuckle.

Gandalf, however didn't have that kind of problem and laughed freely. "Although the jobs are similar to each other, I assure you that the proper name for your task is undeniably 'Bodyguard'."

Raion nodded. "I see."

"So what do you say, Reo?" Benvin placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Do you think you can handle this little trip to Mordor?"

The black haired non-elf was silent for a minute. "Are you _sure_ you can handle the villagers if orcs were to attack?" He asked almost fanatically but the elder human just waved his concerns away.

"Relax, Reo." Ben calmed his friend. "Whatever you led yourself to believe, we are not as helpless as you made us sound and thanks to your lessons in that _taijutsu_ thingy, orcs are nothing we can't handle."

The warrior frowned, or at least narrowed his eyes. "The fact that I taught you a few basic katas doesn't automatically make you and your fellow villagers, shinobi of my level."

"But it _does_ mean we know how to fight." The barman countered. "Come on, Raion. What are the chances of orcs attacking us right now?" The non-elf in must have sensed it was a rhetorical question, because he left it unanswered. "Second-to-none." The pudgy barman continued. "So stop worrying about something that won't happen. We are big boys, Reo we can take care of ourselves." He reassured again. "Besides, I have a strong feeling that these two," He mentioned at Aragorn and Gandalf. "are going to need your help more than we will."

For a very long minute, the self-believed, non-elf said nothing before sighting.

"Very well then, Senpai." He then looked at Gandalf. "I accept the mission, Gandalf-san."

The Isari smiled. "Excellent. When will you be ready to leave?"

Raion shrugged. "It will not be necessary for you and Strider-san to wait for me, Gandalf-san." He said standing up. "I will catch up to you once I'm done preparing."

Aragorn blinked. "That's impossible. No horse is that fast."

The non-elf just smiled at him.

"Don't you worry Strider-san, my stallion has never failed me before." He then walked up to the nearby window and opened it. "Until we meet again, sayonara." With a last salute he jumped out, disappearing from view.


	5. Chapter 5

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 5

"A taste of the lion's power."

To say that Gandalf didn't sense the change in Aragorn the minute they left "The Horseless Horseshoe", would be an insult to his ability to read people.

The normally quite talkative, when around people he trusts and cares about, ranger hasn't said a word since they both mounted their faithful stallions. His face was also twisted in an expression that showed both frustration and irritation, that had no origin from the wizard's point of view.

Frowning Gandalf clicked his tongue at his horse, urging the animal to go a tad faster and catch up with its comrade.

"A penny for your thoughts, Elrondion?" He asked looking at his young companion with worry.

The ranger sighted and ran a hand over his face. "It's nothing, Gandalf really. It's just that…everything we did till now seems…pointless."

The elder man raised a bushy, gray eyebrow. "Pointless? How so?"

"Think about it, Gandalf." The man said lowering his head. "I am an expert tracker, you are a magician, Gimli is a great warrior and can navigate through Moria better than anybody, Boromir is a skilled army general, Frodo bears the burden of the ring, Sam carries most of our equipment and Marry and Pippin serve as amusement." Aragorn sighted. "As you see we have different skills and roles in the Fellowship that might become essential for the quest but…"

"But what, son of Arathorn?"

"I can't help but think that…given the new knowledge we got from Benvin about Raion, it might be for the best if we gave him the ring and let him complete the task of destroying it, on his own." Aragorn continued before the elder man had a chance to object. "He'd reach destination much faster than we would, if we went together and…if Raion was able to sneak past a bell and remain unseen in a room full of people as well as, if what the old barman told us was true, get inside Dol Guldur, kill a few orc generals and get out all while unseen…then I don't think getting inside Mordor and up Mount Doom, would posse much of an obstacle for him."

The grey wizard eyed the man, letting out a puff of similarly colored smoke.

"I believe we've been through this before, Aragorn." Gandalf stated, his voice growing impatient. "Some things are not meant to be done the easy way. In order for Sauron to be defeated, you all need to go to the cursed land. If Raion went alone he might have succeeded in finishing the quest faster, yes. But he'd also completely change the future." A large puff of smoke left the wizard's mouth and nose as he spoke. "One mistake can change everything, a truth proven to me a long time ago." Ahis voice turned grim. "The little boy that would grow up to be Mirkwood's greatest archer and a valuable asset to our fellowship, has been separated from his father and raised outside his homeland. Changing the flow of destiny that has been reviled to me, so that I know not what awaits us." Gandalf fell into a whisper. "This quest is not as it should have been."

Aragorn fell silent thinking about how the faith of a single child could change the future of so many lives, and wondering if the boy had _not_ been separated from his parents, he would still have the strange feeling of something important missing from his life.

He didn't get to think about it further, for just five seconds later-

"Aragorn get down!" Gandalf's alarmed scream echoed through the forest and, not long afterwards, the young future king found himself being pushed of his horse by the elder man's body as arrows flew. Slicing the spot where his head once was.

As their shared weight hit the ground, accompanied by the scarred neighing of their horses, both men grunted in pain before scrambling hurriedly to their feet. Hands reaching for the weapons resting by their sides.

No more arrows flew as the ranger and wizard moved to stand back-to-back, soon the younger of the two realized why.

"Curses." He snarled. "They weren't aiming for us. They shot the horses to prevent us from escaping." True to his words both horses were quietly whining on the ground where they once stood, all four legs with large arrows buried deep in the knees.

Aragorn cursed again. Their stallions were useless now.

After his angry words the forest fell silent jet again.

"We're surrounded." Isildur's heir announced after the sound of thundering footsteps echoed from all four sides of the duo. "And most likely unnumbered." Gandalf nodded, tightening his grip on the large two-handed, elven sword in his hand.

Soon the many footsteps narrowed into just six. Aragorn suspected that the rest, equipped with bows and arrows, stayed behind as backup plan in case the leader and his remaining five, failed.

"Well, well, well." A gurgling voice spoke slowly from behind the pair, forcing the two to turn around to face its owner. "What do we have here?" The orc was especially ugly. With one eye in the color of milk because of blindness, the other black and sparkling with glee. Face scarred so much it was practically one big scar tissue and a cruel smile plastered on its spit covered, mouth.

Just like every other orc Aragorn crossed his paths with, the leader of the pack was dressed in a heavy, dark colored, metal armor protecting the most delicate parts of its body while still allowing full body movement.

The ranger could see it wasn't of very high-quality, compared to the one he saw many times being worn by fellow elves. Quite the opposite actually.

The metal plates were too thin to stop a well-placed hit with a sword. It will most likely break in-contact even if the thrust was meant to be a non-life-threatening one.

The weak structure of the creature's armory gave them the slight advantage, but the spawn of Mordor still had numbers on their side.

Even with Gandalf's large knowledge in combat and magic, they wouldn't survive the rain of arrows that will most likely fly towards them once the first six fall to their dooms. Killing the leader and provoking the archers to shoot, was not an option.

In other words, they were in a lose-lose situation.

Aragorn turned his attention away from the orc-ish armor when the creature of darkness continued his speech.

"A young human pup and an overgrown dwarf." An evil laugh echoed through the forest, after which the orc licked his lips hungrily. "Looks like we'll have human meat for dinner tonight, boys." The leader spoke grinning a hungry looking smile, his companions grunting in agreement.

"Good." The elderly-looking orc smirked, saliva dropping down the corners of his mouth. "With the Black Devil walking around, human flesh slowly began disappearing from theses woods."

"Shut up about the 'Black Devil', old man." The leader yelled at the graying orc. "This ain't the demon's territory, everybody knows he keeps close to the human village boarders." He then turned to the duo with a satisfied smile. "He won't be coming to your rescue anytime soon, filthy humans."

Aragorn's stony stone face didn't flinch when the monsters of Mordor began discussing, who gets to eat who.

"I take the younger one." One of the minions said, pointing at the ranger with a black finger thinned by hunger. "He looks fresher, the other one is just skin, bones and no meat."

"No!" The leader growled grabbing the younger orc by the collar. "The boy is mine! I'm the leader, therefore I get the juicy bits. The rest of you can rip what little meat there is from the old man's bones."

During the orcs argument Aragorn witnessed a rather unusual sight. Three of the remaining orc were swept up to the trees at blinding speed, by a black figure. One by one he watched the terrified warriors disappear in the trees, without making so much a sound.

He stole a glance at Gandalf who was happily smoking his pipe with a 'told-you-he'd-be-a-useful-ally' look on his bearded face, to which the ranger responded with an eye-roll.

Their attention was brought back to the orcs, as the leader began pushing the younger one towards the bushes and…leaving the last orc unattended.

"You will dine on the overgrown dwarf and that's final!" The taller orc grabbed the smaller one by the chin and squeezed. "Am I clear, Rug?" He snarled, saliva splashing on the captive orc's face.

"Yes…leader." The youngster wheezed, having a hard time talking since his lips were crushed.

"Good." The leader then let go of the chin and uppercut Rug straight into the bushes. "That's for your disobedience!" He yelled at the plants. "Now get out, we need to take those two down so Uria can start preparing some tasty human flesh dishes."

The bush began moving around as if something within it wanted to get out, but then its movement drastically changed.

From sloppy, clumsy, slow movements of somebody punched in the face trying to get out of the green life, to chaotic, panicked trashing of somebody who was trying to escape a monster.

The leader orc visibly paled and even the ranger was eyeing the plant with a suspicious look on his face.

"Rug?" The creature born in Mordor asked quietly, taking a few step back.

The plant wiggled even harder before suddenly stopping…

With a loud, distinctive _snap_!

Aragorn visibly flinched at the sound. It wasn't the sound of a stick breaking under a man's foot, no.

It was precisely what you'll hear, if you ever succeed in snapping somebody's _neck_.

His suspicions were quickly proven right, when the body of the poor orc fell before his leader's feet. Eyes wide and full of cold fear.

The ranger could see the leading orc begin to shake and curse under his breath, as he backed away from the body, sword in hand.

"By Sauron." He whispered, eyes still on the unfortunate Rug. "Gurrum." He called, voice shaking. "Let the two humans go. We're leaving. Rug is dead." When silence answered both he and the two humans, looked at the spot the orc occupied before the leader's attack on the youngster, as the orc asked. "Gurrum?"

The bearer of the name was nowhere to be seen. Just like his three companions before.

A louder curse left the monster's mouth as he began to run, in the direction of our two heroes.

"You are not going to catch me you… _demon_!" He yelled at the bushes. "I won't let you! You hear me, I won't!" But was stopped dead in his tracks when a strange looking, black knife landed inches before his foot.

With an even louder curse in the black tongue, that even Gandalf didn't understand, the orc turned around and began running.

Only to bump into somebody's broad chest and fall flat on his bum.

Shaking like a leaf during a stormy night and sweating more than a horse riding through a desert during summer, the orc looked up at the man he ran into.

Aragorn's own stormy eyes widened along with the orc's, at the sight.

There stood Raion.

But it wasn't the same warrior Aragorn and Gandalf met at the 'Horseless Horseshoe'.

His eyes were narrowed to silver slits, killing intent surrounding his body as he stared down at the orc. Suddenly looking much more like the description of the 'Black Devil' that the orcs feared so much.

'A predator looking at its pray' was the only way the young ranger could describe the look those, barely visible eyes, were giving the spawn of Mordor.

"Archers!" The leader suddenly cried out, making the two humans tense once again. "Shoot him! Shoot the devil! He's right in the open!" During all this Raion did nothing that would indicate he cared about orcs shooting arrows at him, he simply stared at the spawn of Mordor with hate burning in his silver eyes.

After a few minutes of silence, the orc realizing the rest of his team were not going to listen, did something Aragorn thought he'd never see the creatures do.

He stared _begging_ for his life.

"No. No, no, no please! Don't kill me!" The leader then got to his knees before the elf. "I didn't mean a thing I said to your friends, the eating thing was just a joke! I swear, I was going to let them go! Please spare me, Black Devil!"

Silence met his plea and the monster took that, for his potential killer rethinking his decision.

That thought was soon proven false, when Aragorn spotted Raion's left arm reaching up to one of his strange swords.

The unfortunate orc whelped at the elf's action and began crawling towards Gandalf.

"Please, oh wise human." He begged tugging at the wizard's long robes, his voice being accompanied by the sound of metal brushing against leather. "Do not let that demon kill me! I beg of you, call Death's lapdog off me! I swear, I meant you no harm! Please! Know mercy!"

Aragorn looked up from the weeping orc at the sound of a sword being dragged across the woodland road, and his eyes landed on one of the most dangerous looking warrior's that has ever walked on Arda.

With his steps unheard by mortals, eyes blazing with fury, killing intent surrounding his tall, black form and the long, shining sword being dragged along the road, leaving sparks whenever it landed on a rock. He looked every bit as deadly as his nickname 'Black Devil' suggested, he was.

Gandalf looked back at the pleading creature with cold eyes.

"Your kind killed many of innocent people without mercy." The normally playful, harmless baritone was replaced by one so hard in cold judgement, they could freeze a balrog. "Why should we be different?" He then kicked the defenseless creature right into Raion's path and stepped away.

Aragorn watched as the evil creature raised his crossbow with shaky hands, to make a last attempt at defeating his enemy. The arrow fired, aimed straight at the ninja's neck and for a minute Aragorn was confident it was going to hit…

Before the taller elf caught it inches away from his neck, with speed unheard among elves, and crushed it in his free hand effortlessly.

Defeated, the creature of darkness dropped the weapon and straightened up, in an attempt to accept death with just a bit of dignity.

Raion, to the amazement of everyone, stopped two meters from the orc. Too far for even his long swords to reach the monster.

But he swiped his sword at empty air anyway, before hiding it back into its sheet.

Aragorn blinked, confused and the orc already began crying of happiness.

"Oh thank you! Thank you! Thank-" He was cut off by a beam of blue light hitting him across the chest. His skin, muscles and bones cut through without much effort, as the body, sliced clean in half, hit the floor. Spreading dark liquid all around the grass.

Raion then turned his attention to them and, Aragorn realized his eyes regained the delicate hue of blue from before, smiled.

"Sorry I'm late, Gandalf-san." He said, scratching the behind of his neck. "I had a couple of…distractions along the way. But, now that all this is taken care of." The whistled and the sound of hooves echoed through the trees. "Shall we get going?"

The ranger was speechless. Here stood a man who just cut an _orc_ in _half_ , without even _dirtying_ his _sword_. Killed a living being without touching it, switched between 'killer mode' and 'friendly mode' in the speed of light and acting as if this was normal. A daily routine.

This was the moment when he realized two things:

One: Raion might be more dangerous than they originally thought.

And two: Just how glad he is that the black clad warrior was on their side.


	6. Chapter 6

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 6

"Me and them. There is no 'we'. Welcome to Rivendell."

Aragorn watched Raion with newfound interest ever since his little run-in with the orcs.

His new elf friend turned out to be quite the enigma, indeed. Switching between calm and unthreatening, to deadly and dangerous so fast it was unnatural. From what he learned from his father, that could mean that either he had an unstable psyche, or that that was simply something 'ninjas' do, while on missions.

The young future king didn't know much about 'ninjas' or 'shinobi', if anything at all. So he couldn't tell if it was something Raion had been trained to do, or simply had something seriously wrong with his head.

So the elf remained a mystery. One that he hoped to unravel. So he kept a close eye on the new addition, wanting to know as much about him as possible.

To any normal onlooker the black clad warrior would look relaxed and calm but to a trained healer mind like Aragorn's, signs of precaution could not be hidden.

The elf was sitting just a little bit too straightly in his saddle, very stiff and alert. His light-blue eyes seemingly very interested in the world around him, were scanning the area for potential danger. The gentle tapping on the hard edge of his seat could have been taken as a nervous tick or just a habit to keep your fingers busy, but the ranger knew Raion was counting the amount of animals/enemies that were coming close to their location.

In other words, the ninja was restless. Trying to catch the signs of danger before it has the chance to fully unravel.

He was given the task to be a guardian and did his best to ensure it was carried out correctly, despite being nervous for Aragorn could sense that Gandalf has thrown him off familiar ground, with the request of simply keeping them all safe. The skills the man in black preformed earlier suggested that most of the missions he took, involved him using his two swords to behead his targets.

He smirked under his nose. Perhaps there _is_ something the elves back in Rivendell could best him at, since Raion wasn't used to guard duty mixed with escort missions, and most of the standard young soldiers-in-training went for one every other week.

Shaking his head the ranger turned his attention away from the black soldier and focused it on the equally colored animal, he was riding.

To know the rider, he should first take notice of the animal he mounted. The way the animal was cared for could tell a lot about its owner and it was a source of information, Aragorn wasn't going to ignore.

The horse was unlike any other he ever seen. It was larger than the stallions he and the wizard had before the ambush and was wearing a leather-like armor similar to the one of his master. Its larger piece that rested on its back connected with the saddle, protected the animal's sides, back and chest as well as served as a bag for luggage, with the large amount of pockets it possessed. A large cloth collar covered the proud, long neck fastened by straps that hid beneath the black cloak. And horse knee protectors adored the animal's long legs.

The poor stallion was carrying so many weapons in its armor (one of which was a large wooden staff with a black cloak wrapped around the middle) Aragorn wondered how it managed to catch up to them with all the baggage weighting it down.

Raion's horse seemed to share its master's anxiety, ears twitching every now and then, bright golden eyes watching the world around it, its posture tense and alert to everything around it.

Sensing the stallion's nervousness, the young warrior patted it gently. "Easy there, Esthrebien." Raion whispered softly. The horse neighed in response, its posture relaxing instantly.

There was a strong bond shared between the elf and animal that Aragorn himself has never seen before. A bond the said elf didn't share with any humanoid race, other than the barman Benvin and his family and even that had been somewhat forced. The future king of men wondered what he would have to do, for the strange fighter to truly view him as a friend, for it was obvious that the black warrior _did_ form attachments.

He was simply hesitant to do so.

"'Black Devil', 'Death's Lapdog', 'Demon'…" The ranger counted Raion's nicknames to no one in particular, aware that the warrior was listening. Perhaps a nice, little conversation would open the elf up a bit. "I have to say, Master Raion. For someone who claimed to keep close to one location, you sure have a vast amount of names that seemed to be well-known among the spawn of Mordor."

A chuckle was heard from the elf's direction and, again, Isildur's heir found himself surprised on how melodic it was.

"What can I say, Strider-san." Raion said, a smile heard in his voice. "Old nicknames die hard, I suppose." He looked at the sky. "It's funny how long silly names can stick to you, especially years after they were of actual use." Raion shook his head then turned to face Aragorn. "Though I can't deny then being truthful to my behavior back then, you shouldn't put your trust in them now, Strider-san. I'm not the 'out-of-control', raging hunter I used to be. Rest assured." The silver-blue eyes were sparkling with sincerity, their owner hoping he will be believed.

Aragorn nodded, accepting the warrior's explanation to those awful nicknames the orcs stained him by. Though it pained him that the elf only reviled a bit of his past, to assure that he wasn't what the names claimed him to be…so that Aragorn will allow him to keep his position as guardian, despite the negativity in said names.

The reason was _purely_ based on business, nothing more.

He frowned.

Sensitive information such as this should be given out willingly and out of trust. Not out of fear of losing a job.

The ranger knew he was making slow progress in gaining Raion's friendship, if any at all. So he decided to switch tactics and ask him about something that has been bothering him ever since they met.

"Speaking of names, I was meaning to ask you…" Silver-blue eyes meet his stormy ones as the ninja turned to face him. "What does 'Raion', actually mean?" He asked with curiosity that hasn't been in his voice since he was a small boy. "I've been around Arda countless of times as a ranger and I've never heard that name before, not to mention the strange language it originates from."

The elf in question was quiet for a minute, looking as if he was silently considering if the ranger was worthy to know this one word, in the language of shinobi. Esthrebien neighed, helping him make his choice.

"The word 'raion' in the tongue of my temple, means 'lion'."

"'Lion'?" Aragorn echoed, amazed. "And what is a 'lion'? I've never heard of such a thing."

A short laugh escaped the masked face. "A 'lion', my friend, is not a 'thing'. It's a 'something'." He said. "An animal to be exact. Sort of a big, yellow-ish cat with a large, brown mane."

The ranger blinked, somewhat shocked. "So you are named after a pet animal?" _And a_ kitten _, on less?_ He thought but didn't say it out loud, knowing it will undoubtedly offend the black warrior.

Raion sent him a pointed look. "A lion is not a pet, Strider-san." He answered, his voice calm with a small whisper of warning. "It's a creature large enough that, if it pounced, it could bite your head clean off and rip your body apart with its sharp claws, faster than you can say: 'here kitty, kitty.'"

Aragorn chuckled softly at the attempt of humor at the end of the elf's sentence. If the 'lone wolf' was trying to joke with him, than perhaps he was making progress after all.

"Am I supposed to assume that that's what's going to happen to me, if I begin laughing at your name?" He asked, voice amused as he watched the only person in their little trip mounting a healthy horse, since his and Gandalf's were put down due to their injuries.

The silver-blue eyes softened a bit. "No." He answered, tugging gently on the rains once he realized the elder wizard was falling behind a bit. " _That_ will happen to you, _if_ you get the bright idea to start calling me 'kitten'."

Aragorn laughed, who would have thought the warrior had such a nice sense of humor? "I wouldn't dare, Master Elf." He stated with a smile, once he calmed down enough. "Though the proposition _is_ tempting."

"Good, because if you did I'd-" Raion suddenly paused, realizing he's been exposed. His eyes narrowed, reminding the ranger of the gruesome death scene he witnessed just a few hours ago. Growling in irritation the black clad warrior adjusted his headband to release the pointy ends of his ears, which were getting a bit reddish from the pressure. "How did you know?" He asked, a note of accusation in his voice.

Aragorn chuckled again. "How can anyone _not_ know?" He asked sarcastically. "Just because you hide your pointy ears under that headband of yours, doesn't magically make you human, Raion." Aragorn lectured playfully. "Anyone with a sharp eye will see through that little trick of yours."

The single horse rider snorted. "I _may_ have elf blood flowing through my veins, true…" He admitted slowly. "But I'm not like the elves you came to know."

This time it was the ranger's time to snort. "Really? I beg to differ, because to me you seam _exactly_ like them." He challenged. "Your movement is silent enough to come in undetected, by a room full of people," Aragorn showed finger number one. "From what Benvin told me, you are old enough to be his grand-grand-grand-grandfather and yet look younger than _me_ ," He pushed up finger number two, "And, most importantly, you have pointy ears." The heir of Isildur finished, a look of undeniable triumph on his bearded face.

Raion snorted. "Okay then, according to your theory, the fact that you're smaller than me automatically makes you a dwarf." He bit back, hoping to use the man's smaller size against him, in an insult.

"Very clever, mellon-nin but I'm not falling for that one." Aragorn smiled seeing the confusion the title brought upon, the shinobi's face. "Regardless, you still have but to prove me wrong."

Giving the human a dirty glare the warrior that favors black, began listing the _obvious_ differences between him and the other elves.

"First of all, and I have a strange feeling you realized that one but chose to ignore it, I don't _sparkle_ in the dark like they do." To prove his point he pulled his thick glove, off his hand to revile perfectly normal looking skin. He then waved it in front of the ranger so he could have no more doubts. "Secondly unlike them, I can't sing." Raion stated returning the hand-protector to its proper place. "An Oliphant stepped on my ear when I was a small child, no joke." The ranger found himself frowning, how could someone with such a nice, melodic voice not be able to sing? "And third, I have no trouble with being in dark, claustrophobic places such as caves." At this Aragorn openly stared at the ninja and his shock only deepened, with the next words that left the elf's mouth. "I actually grew to like them a lot more than open, bright spaces like woods or fields." The future king of men couldn't believe what he was hearing, what kind of _elf_ likes spending time in a cave more than in a forest, among life and nature?!

He was about to question the black warrior on this when he was cut off but said elf, even before the proper words left his mouth.

"Oh and I suggest you duck." Raion said his eyes looking back at Gandalf, who was conversing with a small robin sitting on a tree branch.

Aragorn raised an eyebrow at the wired suggestion. "Duck? Why would I want to-" he didn't get to finish, for something wet exploded after hitting him square on the face making him stumble a bit. The object was soon followed more of its kind, all hitting either his face or any other part of his body. With each hit he stumbled backwards a bit more trying to deflect as many projectiles as possible with his hands, until he landed on his behind unable to defend himself.

He could hear two familiar laughers erupting from behind the trees, on the road they were traveling and immediately knew who assaulted him with the water balloons.

His elven brothers, Elladan and Elrohir. And that meant that they reached Rivendell.

Aragorn was so happy to be back home that he forgot to keep his face covered and was rewarded with a hit to the face. He growled and spluttered the water that managed to get inside his mouth, shaking at the low temperature it had.

A low chuckle was heard from his right and Isildur's heir snarled in its direction.

"I told you to duck." Raion stated in his own defense, looking at the assaulted human with amusement sparkling in his eyes.

"And I regret not listening to you, now will you please be the guardian you're supposed to and help me?!" Aragorn cried as the balloons continued to rain down on him, he was already completely soaked in, what tasted like river water.

"Well, since you asked nicely." The black clad warrior snickered before pulling out the large staff out of its holder on the horse's armor, and jumping in the balloons way with blinding speed.

Soon the assault was blocked by Raion spinning the said stick so fast they burst on contact, creating a small rain a drops falling on the ninja.

Aragorn took the time to wipe his eyes with his, already wet sleeve.

He was soaked to the bone, and it didn't help that the twins used cold water to fill the small balloons.

The man looked up just in time to see the warrior catch two of the flying balloons and throwing them back, towards the location the twins were most likely hiding in.

He smiled satisfied after hearing the surprised yelps coming from behind the trees.

 _Ah…sweet, sweet payback._ Aragorn thought, grinning at his glaring brothers who were walking up to them.

It was good to be home.


	7. Chapter 7

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 7

"Comparing new friends to old ones."

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Except for OC's and Legolas's Raion persona. The rest belongs to their respective owner.

AN: Heavily (And I mean HEAVILY) inspired by "Naruto". So don't be surprised if I borrow something from that francize. Hey! I'm just playing, let me have my fun! Anyway, don't like, don't read. If u like, enjoy! ^^

The group arrived in the city of Lord Elrond a few hours after the twins joined their small party and the sun was already beginning to hide for the night, showing just how much time had passed since their joining.

Having nothing better to do the remaining way towards the palace building, Raion spent watching his companions to learn more about them, through their chakra. Marveling at how nonexistent their control over it was.

Strider was happy to finally be back in the city and it showed in his chakra network. For the blue energy cursing through his body spiked up ever-so-slightly with every step they took towards the palace. He definitely looked forward to finally being home, after long days of travel and orc fights. Perhaps he has a family waiting for him in his house? Or maybe he simply enjoyed being back where he belonged, in a place that held all his childhood memories and helped him become who he was today.

If that was the case, then Raion can relate.

He had a similar reaction in his chakra system, though a much more controlled one, whenever he returns to the temple after a very long mission.

Coming back to the place you grew up in, just fills you with the sense of belonging, heavy nostalgia and longing for the days of your carefree upbringing.

Every time you walk down the same corridors, go through the same doors and smell the one scent you can only associate with this one place on earth, you get flashbacks of every childhood memory you experienced in those walls.

Good and bad, it doesn't matter. What matters is, this is your _home_.

A place where you feel safe, a place you can always come back to; no matter what, a place you know you can come back to without the fear of being rejected.

Everyone has that kind of place, and the young ninja was sure that Elrond's kingdom was one for Strider.

He turned his head to the companion now riding on Esthrebien's back, since even the two elves that joined them had come on foot.

The wizard, Gandalf, wasn't as excited as his ranger companion, his chakra being much more controlled and subdued. The happiness of being in an inhabited place as well as out of harm's way, overpowered by deep worry and a sense of dread that has been the older human's companion, for a far longer time than the shinobi.

He reminded Raion of his clan leader, Keshin, with his constant worry for the future as well as the familiar aura of dominance ad wisdom, they both carried around them.

Both Keshin and Gandalf seemed to do everything in their power to keep their charges safe from harm, no matter the cost. The clan leader, by making sure his subjects only take missions that will not attract the attention of both Sauron and Elrond, even though those earn less money. And Gandalf, by going out of his way to recruit a, seemingly unneeded, ninth member for the journey ahead, just so the others can feel a bit more guarded.

They also shared that light-hearted silliness of people that were well past their prime.

Raion could recall countless times, when the stoic leader actually took part in his and Meshiru-sensei's childish pranks on the other shinobi, despite his stern reputation and role as leader. Once he even asked the proud ninja why did he take part in the jokes they both conjured up, since he's the leader and should be the most serious one out of them all and playing around with the two most childish ninja's Arda has ever seen, didn't exactly help keep his reputation. Back then Keshin only chuckled, ruffled his hair and said: "You'll understand when you're older, Raion."

Those were times he remembered fondly and often longed to have those little playtimes with his grandfather, back.

And, while not knowing the wizard very well, he could sense the same playfulness in Gandalf, even when most of the time his aura radiated with nothing but seriousness.

But that's just what granddads were like.

Hard and serious on the outside, soft and playful on the inside.

The ninja's attention was directed at the newcomers of the group, Elladan and Elrohir, as he caught them spying on him, while whispering something among themselves.

He sighted. Those two definitely didn't trust him. He could tell by the similar way their chakras reacted to their moods, and they were _not_ happy with him being so close to the human ranger.

Shaking his head Raion wondered what exactly was that he did, to cause them to be so weary around him.

Perhaps it was the mask he was wearing? That could _theoretically_ be a good excuse since he didn't see many people, other than his fellow shinobi and a few professional assassins, to be hiding their face in such a manner.

It could also be the fact that they probably never encountered a ninja before him, which didn't surprise Raion. The golden era of chakra-welding ninjas was over, it died along with his clan during the 'man-killing' plague that struck the Western Temple. Right now the profession was nearly extinct, with him being the last ninja walking upon Middle Earth.

Kami, he wouldn't be surprised if the twins didn't believe he was a real shinobi, since they probably only heard of them in bedtime stories and fairytales.

He hoped he wouldn't have to prove to them that he was a real ninja.

Preforming secret techniques in front of an audience wasn't something his seniors would approve of, and he _hated_ disappointing, Taseko-sensei. Also it was tiring, and he _hated_ being chakra exhausted. Sometimes he actually envied the people that don't use the energy as their primary weapon, at least they don't have to worry about dropping dead after overusing it.

Letting go of that thought Raion absent-mindly petted the soft nose of his beloved horse, who nuzzled his cheek in return. Puffing hot air onto his skin, giving a welcome change to the growing cold.

The day was giving way to the night and, by the time they reach the safety of the palace, the moon will be out there to greet them.

He could feel the curious, yet cautious, eyes of the twins watching his every move but showed no reaction to it. The ninja was used to being stared at by others, it came with the profession as well as uniform.

Putting all the conspiracy aside, Raion had to admit that the two look-alike elves reminded him of both himself, from his younger days, as well as of his most childish instructor, Meshiru-sensei, with their love for pranks.

Smiling at the thought the raven-black haired elf, petted his horse once more.

There was a time, preferably between the ages of 6-17, when he and the respective older ninja, were the most terrifying force of evil in the whole Temple. Pranking everybody who crossed their path, without the exception of Keshin himself as well as each other.

Of course Raion heard rumors from Taseko-san that Meshiru-san was pranking them all a _long_ time before his arrival, but now he was using his first-class material because he had an excuse of having a kid with him.

The young shinobi chuckled quietly at the memory of a particularly good prank, he and Meshiru pulled on Taseko a long time ago.

#Flashback:

 _It was dinnertime at the Western Temple, and all of the shinobi were settling in their chosen rooms to enjoy the taste of their favorite meals._

 _All accept for one special, little ninja who was hiding on one of the few large logs that separated the great stone walls in the common room, where Taseko-sensei liked to spend his time eating._

 _The small boy looked no older than eight, dressed in a miniature version of the armory that the elder men wore the only difference being that he was not allowed to cover his face yet, and was currently doing his three-year ninja training, proud._

 _Being able to hide his chakra presence way better than any of his teachers could at his age, as well as keeping himself from giggling from what he was about to do._

 _He and Meshiru-senpai were playing a trick on his tou-san (father), as he liked to call Taseko, and he couldn't_ wait _to see the reaction on Taseko's face, once it's done._

 _Little Reo shifted impatiently in his uncomfortable spot above the ground. The wooden log wasn't exactly pillow-soft and its sharp edges were digging into his skin, through his trousers. He was tempted to just do his part and leave, but the little one was patient. He would wait for Meshiru-sensei's signal and be a good boy._

 _With big, blue eyes he watched as his father-figure walked up to the table beneath him with a steaming bowl of what he believed was chicken soup, the master's favorite dish._

 _Taseko then placed the brown dish on the wooden surface, sat down before it on a small chair and folded his hands in a quiet prayer._

 _Minutes passed and the elfling was getting stiff from not moving from his uncomfortable position and could already feel the bruises from the sharp corners, grow on his arms and legs._

 _Finally, after ten minutes of taking in slowly, silent breaths as to not alert the elder ninja to his presence in the room, the young shinobi-in-training's patience was rewarded when he heard a knock at the door._

 _With a very clear and visible grin, little Reo observed his main teacher get up from his un-started meal and slowly make his way to the wooden door, to confront anyone who dared to disturb his food-consuming time._

 _"Meshiru?" Raion heard Taseko gasp after opening the door and finding the red-haired ninja on the other side. "What are you doing here?"_

 _"Oh, noting." The younger shinobi answered in a casual tone. "Can't a guy just…check on his best buddy in the middle of the day, for no reason?" He asked, his voice bearing a lot of fake innocence and little to no credibility._

 _From the lack of response on the green-eyed ninja's part, the elfling figured he wasn't buying it._

 _"Oh come on, Tasse." Meshiru whined loudly, making enough noise to mask the not-so-silent splash as a small, orange colored smoke bomb landed in the soup, blending in perfectly with the other vegetables inside. "Don't give me the famous 'I-don't-believe-a-word-you're-saying' look! I haven't done anything yet!"_

 _"First of all…" Came the calm response. "I'm not your 'best buddy', Meshiru and don't let Reo hear you say that. He'd be more than devastated. And second of all…though you didn't do anything yet, I'm pretty sure you're planning something and the fact that I haven't seen, the Little One all day doesn't help one bit." Raion could almost see the taller ninja lean over Meshiru for the next words. "What are you two conjuring up?" Taseko hissed._

 _Realizing that the elfling had long done his part of the job, the joker ninja decided it was time to get this show on the road._

 _"We? Planning something? We?! No, of course not!" Meshiru blurred out backing away. "Why on earth would you think that? I mean…uh…the last time I saw Reo, he was playing in the woods since breakfast. I didn't want to bother him so…um…" Having no better words to say, the nervous wreck of a shinobi chuckled nervously. "Well, it was nice seeing you again, Tasse-kun! I'll see you at midd-day training!" And with that he was gone, leaving a non-surprised green-eyed ninja shaking his head._

 _"Oh, Meshiru-san." Taseko breathed out, just loud enough for Raion to hear. "When will you ever grow up?" He added closing the door with a faint protest of the frames._

 _Reo frowned._

 _He hoped Meshiru-sensei_ never _grew up. He simply wouldn't feel right if he was all serious talk and no fun, like all the other teachers. And he wouldn't be his best friend, too. And Reo didn't want to lose his only playmate, in the Temple._

 _The young boy was so caught-up in his thought about his BFF that he almost missed the grand finally of their shared prank._

 _Taseko dipped his wooden spoon into the soup and, just like Meshiru and Raion hoped he would do, gathered the tiny smoke-bomb along with the other vegetables into his mouth._

 _Before the poor jonin (high ranked ninja) had a chance to swallow the goodies though, Reo activated the detonation signal with a special had-sign and the bomb blew up in Taseko's face._

 _Using the master's temporal shock as well as the smoke, Reo bottled out of the room before Taseko had time to process what happened._

 _Once he_ did _realize, however, nothing was there to stop him from emitting one of the loudest screams in the history of loud noises._

 _"RAAAIIOOOOOOON!"_

 _#End of Flashback#_

The memory ended precisely at the moment they reached the center of the city, and Raion himself was quite impressed by the sheer size of the place. Sure he saw it on many occasions during missions outside the temple, but he never been close enough to feel the enormity of Rivendell on his own skin.

"Oi, Strider-san." He called out to the human walking on the other side of his horse, after seeing the twins whisper something to him.

"Hm? Yes, Raion?" Strider answered looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

"What did the twins say to you?" The ninja asked, wanting to get straight to the point. Whatever fake rumors they heard about his kin needed to be resolved now, before they start thinking he's some kind of monster. "I may not talk in the language of elves, but I know when somebody is talking about me." He explained, his voice serious. "Please, Strider." He whispered. "I need to know what they said."

The dark haired human imply shrugged.

"Nothing to serious." Strider said, dismissing the shinobi's fears. "They simply wanted to know what's behind your mask."

Raion made a face.

"Tell them they _don't_ want to know."

Just like he predicted, the moon was high above their heads when they reached the palace and a dark haired elf walked out the castle door, accompanied by a blonde haired one, to greet them.

"Welcome back, Estel, Mithrandir." The dark haired elf addressed the ninja's new friends and Raion found the elf's voice strangely familiar to him. "I see Elladan and Elrohir managed to escort you all to safety without any problems." He then raised his eyebrows. "Quite a surprise, I might add."

A nod of agreement was all the answers he received from the two humans, they were both tired from the journey and wanted to reach their beds as soon as possible.

The newcomer then turned to the ninja holding the rains of the little company's, only horse.

"I also welcome you, Ninth Walker." The elf's voice was gentle as he spoke. "I am Elrond, Lord of Rivendell and this my faithful captain, Glorfindel the Balrog Slayer." The lord gestured to the blonde elf besides him and he and Raion shared a nod of greeting.

"Greetings, Elrond-san, Glorfindel-san." The ninja countered, bowing to the elves respectfully. "My name is, Raion the last Shinobi on Arda, of the Western Temple."

Both Elrond and the Balrog Slayer seemed shocked at hearing his admission upon being a ninja, but quickly shook of the confusion after watching Strider (who, Raion now noticed, they called 'Estel') yawn, tiredly.

"Come, my friends." The elf lord invited the lot of them. "Your chambers are waiting with hot baths and warm beds. You are allowed to venture to them now, as I can see the journey tired you all respectfully. The meeting discussing the Fellowship, will be run first thing after the morning meal, do not be _late_." Elrond emphasized the word 'late' to both the twins and Strider who groaned.

Raion could vaguely remember somebody taking Esthrebien's rains away from his hand, and guiding him towards his new sleeping chambers.

The last thing his tired mind registered, was somebody telling him 'goodnight' and his head hitting the soft pillows.


	8. Chapter 8

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 8

"The memories."

 _#Elrond's dream:_

 _He appeared to be in his beautiful garden outside the palace, searching frantically for something between the various forms of green-life. A sense of urgency and deep worry speeding up his movements._

 _The proud elf lord didn't care if his beautiful robes were getting covered in insects and dirt, all that mattered was finding that one damn plant and saving Elladan's life._

 _He was sure the herb grew inside his garden but, the only thing that can lower the dangerously high fever threatening to separate his beloved twins, was stubbornly avoiding his gaze._

 _"Any luck, my Lord?" His wife, Celebrian, asked walking up to him with a cup of water._

 _Elrond ignored the question and silently took the cup from her hand, avoiding her eyes. He drank the water like a dehydrated man, the feeling reminding him of the amount of time he spent unsuccessfully searching for the herb._

 _"How is he?" His voice croaked in a very un-elf-like manner, before finally looking up to look into the elleth's bright blue eyes._

 _Celebrian sighted sadly and shook her head._

 _"Not well, my love." She said in her 'healer voice', preventing her motherly worry for her child from clouding her judgement and influencing her actions. "Elladan's fever continues to rise and his breathing began to weaken."_

 _Elrond cursed quietly in the dark language of the orcs and returned to searching, his determination spiking once more._

 _"Also," The elleth of Rivendell continued, watching her husband move to another part of their beautiful healing garden, in search for the 'Yellow Tear' herb. A little plant in the shape of tears, with unique gold underlines which makes it easy to recognize. "Legolas disappeared after breakfast and Elrohir wasn't able to find him in time for dinner."_

 _The elf lord didn't stop, harboring anger at the small, four-year-old son of Thranduil._

 _It was all the brat's fault that Elladan was lieing in bed, clinging to life and not running around playing like an elfling should. If he didn't insist on playing in the rain yesterday, Elladan would be still be pranking Glorfindel and Erestor with his twin._

 _Elrond knew he was being illogical and unfair, blaming a small child who barely grew out diapers, for something that could have happened either way._

 _But he needed to blame_ someone, _for the un-fortune that got bestowed upon his beloved son._

 _For that small moment he allowed himself to care less about what Thranduil would do to him, once he learns that his only son got lost in the forest, under his protection._

 _The boy could be found later, after Elladan's cure was made and cursing through the fourteen-year-old's veins._

 _Celebrian placed a comforting hand upon his shoulder._

 _"Please don't blame the child for Elladan's sickness." She whispered softly. "He already blames himself enough, as it is."_

 _When she didn't receive an answer from her busy husband, the beautiful elleth sighted deeply and left their healing garden to return to her ill son's side._

 _Once he felt Celebrian's presence disappear inside the palace, Elrond allowed himself to sink into his knees._

 _Only with nobody as witness, did the proud elf lord fall in acceptance that he will never find the 'Yellow Tear' herb. If it grew in his gardens, he would have found it long before now._

 _Tears of despair quickly filled his vision, as he looked at the clear blue sky. His pain filed eyes asking the gods he worshiped all his life, why did they allow such a bright light to vanquish?_

 _Was is something he did in the past that deserved such punishment? If yes, why did Elladan have to pay for it? Why couldn't the Valar just kill, him?_

 _For the first time in what felt like forever, the healer in Elrond felt utterly helpless._

Was this what Thranduil felt like, when he witnessed the death of his father? _He mussed, his thoughts turning towards his old friend. He then shook his head._ Even if he did, what does the pain of losing a father, have against the pain of losing a child?

 _He would continue these depressing thoughts if it wasn't for the gentle thug, he felt as something small pulled his robes._

 _"Uncle Elwond." A sweet, angelic voice slurred behind the elf lord, as the owner pulled harder on the red tunic, trying to gain his attention._

 _"Not now, Legolas." Elrond snapped in a way one should never address little children, not in the mood to deal with the little prince. "I'm busy." He added, yanking the tunic out of the tiny fists as he turned back to his herbs._

 _Unfortunately for Elrond, the crown prince of Mirkwood inherited his father's stubborn bone and won't let himself to be pushed aside that easily._

 _"But, Uncle Elwond!" The four-year-old insisted, pulling the robe anew. "I need to show you something! Pwese tuwn awound!"_

 _Elrond felt his blood boil beneath his skin._

 _Why couldn't this stubborn, little_ brattling _understand he doesn't have time to look at his toys or badly drawn pictures?!_

 _His anger on the world, the elfling, the gods was already seething and he struggled to control it. Not wanting to end up doing something he'll regret._

 _But one last pull form Legolas, was enough to unleash the burning hatred._

 _"What do you_ want _,_ brattling _?!" He yelled tuning around to face the young boy, dark eyes blazing with barely controllable anger and tall posture looming over the much smaller one, almost threateningly._

 _Legolas yelped and fell on his bottom in shock and fear, as his scared blue eyes met the furious ones of the elf lord. He never saw his so-called uncle, so angry. The fire in his eyes making him almost as scary as his Ada, when the king was dealing with thieves and crooks._

 _Tears began to swell inside the innocent blue orbs as he backed away from Elrond, sill in his sitting position, wanting to make as much distance between him and the furious lord of Rivendell._

 _"I asked," Elrond stated dangerously, walking closer to the scared elfling. "What. Do. You. Want._ Brattling _?" He asked, his low tone sounding a lot more dangerous than his screaming one._

 _Legolas swallowed back his tears and stood up shakily._

 _His parents would want him to be brave. To correct the mistake he made, even if his beloved uncle Elwond would still hate him for it._

 _Back in Mirkwood Ada and Nana always let him play in the rain puddles. He didn't know doing the same here in Rivendell, will result with Elladan getting ill._

 _Without saying anything, he pulled out a small bag from behind his back and opened its contents to the elf lord. All the while bowing his head._

 _Elrond looked down at the small bag with disgust…before realizing what it contained._

 _He kneeled before the son of Thranduil, earning a flinch from the child, and took out one of the many leafs stashed inside Legolas's gift._

 _It was a 'Yellow Tear'._

 _Elrond looked at the leaf in shock and bewilderment, the golden outlines of the tear-shaped plant glittering between his fingers._

 _And the bag contained enough for the lord to last a week._

 _Tears of joy suddenly poured out of the dark eyes of the elf lord. With a laugh of happiness and hope, he picked up the terrified four-year-old under his armpits and began dancing around, while holding the wee elf up like a trophy._

 _Legolas had did it. He had found that which he could not, bringing hope and happiness back to Rivendell. Elladan will be alright, soon he and his twin will be pranking everyone they meet._

 _Seeing Elrond's strange reaction, the little boy asked hesitantly playing with his fingers:_

 _"You no angry anymore, Elwond?"_

 _The elf lord's eyes softened at the golden child, he then practically crushed the tiny princeling against his chest. Wanting to fully show how both sorry for his harsh words, and grateful for find the plant he desperately needed, he was._

 _"Oh, Legolas." Elrond whispered into the boy's hair. "How can I ever be angry with you, princeling?"_

 _"I made, Dan sick." The child confessed quietly into the elder one's robes._

 _The lord of Rivendell sighted. It was no wonder the little one blamed himself for what happened to the twin. And Elrond's outburst earlier clearly didn't help lessen the guilt in Legolas's heart._

 _"No, young one." He said pulling Thranduil's son away from his chest, to look into those beautiful, innocent blue eyes. "It was not your fault Elladan got sick, and I was wrong to make your feel this way." The elder elf than kissed the blonde head gently. "I thank you so much for finding the 'Yellow Tear' herb for me, Legolas. You are my little hero today." He added, smiling at the prince. "But how did you do it? How did you know where to look for the plant?" Elrond asked, generously curious._

 _Legolas just smiled and pointed at the forest._

 _"The twees helped me." He stated proudly. "They showed me where to look."_

 _The Lord of Rivendell than took in the appearance of the little child._

 _His normally clean, neatly bushed blonde hair was messy and had leafs stuck in it. The child's cute, angel-like face was covered in cuts and dirt. Also, Legolas's clothes were torn in places and his boots were muddy._

 _Closing his eyes and hugging the child tightly, Elrond of Rivendell thanked the Valar for the wood-elf ability to speak with trees. If it wasn't for that unique ability, Legolas wouldn't be able to find the plant and Elladan would not survive the night._

 _He might also hug Thranduil and Leanna for creating this marvelous, little elfling._

 _The elf lord chuckled at the thought of seeing the proud king's face, when he pulled him into a big bear hug for seemingly no reason._

 _A loud rumble from the small body in his arms, pulled him out of his musings._

 _"Looks like somebody's hungry." Elrond teased, tickling Legolas's tummy._

 _"Nah-uh!" The boy protested, his lips pouting. "I don't wanna dinner, I don't like carrots." The prince added crossing his hands on his tiny chest._

 _"Is that so, Little One?" The lord of Rivendell asked, amused. "Then how about we get some cookies, after I finish making the cure for Elladan?"_

 _Legolas looked up at his uncle with surprise._

 _"Aunty, Ce'bwian will be angwy." He whispered, looking around and checking if anyone else was listening._

 _"It will be our little secret." Elrond winked at the elfling, mimicking the child's effort to check if the coast is clear. "Nobody needs to know. But don't tell the twins or Glorfindel." He pleaded quietly. "They will never let me live it down."_

 _Legolas giggled, his laugh sounding like tiny silver bells in the wind._

 _"Okay, uncle Elwond." The child nodded his small head. "I pwomise."_

 _* End of Elrond's dream:_

The lord of Rivendell woke up not long after the long dream ended.

Stretching in his bed, he wondered what made the old memory to resurface, after so many years. Legolas has been missing for more than a hundred years now, and, even though Thranduil had touchable evidence that his son was well taken care of, nobody expected to see him ever again.

Sighting sadly to himself, Elrond decided to take a small walk through the halls of his large castle in order to clear his thoughts.

Exiting his room, he noticed a small detail that caught his attention.

When Thranduil's son was vising them as an elfling, Celebrian made sure to make the guest room he occupied, placed close to their own. Just in case he had a nightmare and need comforting, or simply missed his parents.

Ever since they heard of the terrible news regarding Leanna's death and her son's disappearance, they both agreed to keep the prince's room locked. To keep the twins from remembering the painful fact that their little friend, was never going to visit them again.

And the taboo worked. Nobody, not even the rule breaking twins, dared to open the 'Ever-locked door', as Aragorn called it.

Until today.

The door covered in dust and rust was cracked open, with the small lock laying broken on the floor.

Curiosity piqued, Elrond walked up to the forgotten door and pushed it open…


	9. Chapter 9

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 9

"What should have been."

Elrond raised an amused smile and forced himself to stop the laughter that threatened to escape his lips.

Whatever he expected to find behind the 'ever-sealed door', he clearly wasn't expecting _this_.

There, right in front of him, in a small bed made for five-year-old toddlers, laid Raion.

Somehow he managed to squeeze in his head and torso, by stretching the strong oak wood frames to their limits, making it all look a bit…comical.

His long legs dressed in black sleeping pants resting peacefully on the low flor, one of his hands dandling from the bed and touching the leaf-shaped carped while the other hugged a large, brown mascot elk, and his face buried securely in the soft, silky fur of the stuffed animal.

He looked more like a small child, than a ferocious warrior.

The lord of Rivendell knew he should be furious that the newcomer dared to break in to a room that wasn't open for views, but found that…he simply _wasn't able to_.

Raion just looked so innocent and cute, Elrond couldn't _bring himself_ to be angry at him.

Shaking his head, he wondered if he had gone soft. After all he was letting go a situation in witch, was it any of his sons, he would have properly exploded. Now however, he didn't.

Maybe it was the dream, the small, grim reminder of the little prince that once used to come here.

Tearing his eyes away from the younger elf squished in the small bed, Elrond looked outside the window. The sun was already up and the lord of Rivendell knew Aragorn would like to get the crew going as soon as possible.

Sighting with quiet regret he reached out a hand and grasped one of the younger man's shoulders.

"Master Raion, it's time to wake up." He whispered, gently shaking the ninja.

In response to his attempts of rising him, the sleeping elf mumbled something under his breath and moved away, burying his masked face deeper into the soft fur of Legolas's old elk toy.

Elrond rolled his eyes.

Why must _all_ young elves be like this?

"Master Raion." He said a bit more sternly. "Wake up. Breakfast is ready."

* * *

 _Raion found himself in a deep forest, walking aimlessly without any knowledge of where he was. Even though he has never been here before, his body seemed to subconsciously know where to go between the blurry trees._

 _The whole scenery was like from an old memory, barely recognizable but with a specific for familiarity. The trees and bushes glittered with strong sunlight, the grass beneath his shoes gleamed with tiny rain drops…everything looked like it was taken out of a fairytale book._

 _The ninja reached out and touched the sturdy bark of a nearby oak. If felt so real under his glowed hands, he almost believed it was real…that this all wasn't just a dream._

 _Trees…everlasting allies in his career as a shinobi. Always there when he needs them, sometimes so much so it's hard not to think of them as sentient beings. Like the time they shielded him from the rain, despite the fact that they had no way of reaching that far. Or the time they tightened their branches so that he can get away faster._

 _Rubbing his glowed hand on the rough surface, he thought of the possibility of plants having an uncanny liking to him._

 _Shaking his head at the thought, he chuckled. What an_ absurd _idea._

 _Yes he_ was _aware that he came from Mirkwood, a place filled with elves that have a very close connection to all green organisms, but he was five when he was taken away from that place._

 _Whatever connection he had with plant, was severed the day Keshin accepted him into the Clan. And besides it's not like he is the_ prince of Mirkwood _, towards which the trees always had strong affection._

 _He chuckled._

 _Him? A prince? That'll be a first._

 _Raion shook his head._

 _No. The strange incidents with trees were just coincidences, nothing more._

 _Just as he finished the thought in his head, a quiet sob reached his keen ears, so soft even he was having a hard time hearing it._

 _Moving away from the tree, Raion strained his ears._

 _Somebody was crying inside these woods. Somebody most likely lost, alone and, from the sound of it, young._

A child? _The ninja thought, when the voice grew louder, his eyes widening._ Who would leave a **child** alone in the woods? _With that thought firmly imprinted in his mind, Raion pushed the opposing bushes out of the way._

 _Finally, behind the last bush, the shinobi found the source of the crying._

 _It was a small elf child dressed in a green tunic and brown pants, with a toy bow and quiver laying broken on the side. The poor child was crying to his folded knees, his long blonde hair covering his face and he had a bleeding gash on his right knee._

 _He didn't look older than six, maybe seven at best, and his appearance suggested that he was left out here for quite some time. His clothes were torn in places, tiny boots covered in mud and kami knows what else, and his skin decorated with scratches and bruises._

 _Raion's heart went out to the boy._

 _He looked exactly like he did when Taseko found him all those years ago, where one to believe his story, and the ninja couldn't help but feel sympathy for him._

 _"Hey, kid." He said gently, walking up to the small figure under the tree. "Are you okay? What's the matter?"_

 _The boy looked up hesitantly and immediately backed away, whimpering fearfully._

Great job, Raion you baka. _(idiot) The ninja thought giving himself a mental slap in the face._ You go out to help the kid and all you end up doing is scaring him half to death, way to go _._

 _"No, no. Don't be afraid, kid." He said, voice calm and as trustworthy as he could make it. "I'm not here to hurt you. See?" Seeing no other way to gain the child's trust, the ninja junked down his mask. "I'm an elf, just like you. You don't need to fear me."_

 _The moment his face-cover was down, the boy's eyes widened._

 _"You-you have whiskers." He pointed out, baby-blue eyes wide._

 _"Hm? Oh, you mean those?" Raion asked rubbing the three black lines that decorated each side of his face. "Nah, those aren't real. They're just tattoos, see?" He moved his fingers up and down to prove that the whiskers are imprinted to his skin. "Just a silly joke my friends thought up as a way to celebrate my eighteenth birthday." He explained to the boy, who began to relax more and more. "They decided that, since my name literally means lion and, before you ask, yes it is a big cat, I should feel obligated to have whiskers. Just like any other cat-like creature." Seeing that, the more he talked the more relaxed they kid became, Raion continued with his silly-sounding story. "I think they just did it so that they can call me 'kitty', without having to explain why to the curious onlookers." The elfling giggled at the joke, emitting the most beautiful sound Raion ever heard._

 _"I like you, kitty." He giggled some more. "You'we funny." The blonde laughed at his mock less-than-amused, facial expression._

 _"Hey! If you're going to call me 'kitty' at_ least _have the curtesy to learn my real name, squirt!" He winked to shot the boy, he wasn't serious._

 _The child blinked his beautiful eyes at the ninja._

 _"What's cur-tee-see?" He asked mispronouncing the word and cocking his head to the side._

 _"Uh…" Raion sweat dropped, how was he supposed to explain that to a six-year-old child? "Never mind that. It's a big, fancy word all the grown-ups like to use, you wouldn't like it anyway." He said dismissively. "Anyhoo, going back to my_ real name _, its Raion. Not 'kitty'."_

 _The elfling giggled again._

 _"Okay, Waion." He slurred. "I'm Legolas Gweenleaf, but my fwiends call me, Las." The tiny boy said smiling, placing his hand before the ninja._

 _"Does it mean I can call you 'Las', Legolas?" Raion asked with a small smile, shaking the elfling's hand._

 _"Uh-huh!" The boy answered excitedly. "You'we my fwiend now, kitty!"_

 _Raion sighted but smiled back._

 _"You know you are the only person that called me 'kitty', and got away with it." He said winking. "I usually don't like it when people call me that, but I'll make an exception for you, Las." Smiling broadly, Raion ruffled the boy's hair. "Just…try calling me 'Kit' instead, okay? Sounds less…girly that way."_

 _"Alwight!" The boy agreed, nodding his head. "Kit." He added giggling._

 _The shinobi smiled at the boy's enthusiasm._

 _"Great! So, now that we've established our friendship, how about you tell me what made those pretty eyes of yours, cry so much?"_

 _The moment those words left Raion's mouth, Legolas's eyes first widened and then filled with tears again. A few seconds later he swung himself at the ninja, hugging him tightly and crying into his shoulder._

 _Raion blinked surprised but was quick to hug the poor boy back._

 _"Shhh…it's okay, Las. Shhh…" He whispered to the elfling's ears, waiting for the first wave of tears to fade down a little. When he felt Legolas's breathing ease up a bit, he pulled the boy away from his chest and looked into his eyes. "Now…care to tell me what's this all about?"_

 _The blonde looked down at the ground and wiped his nose with his green sleeve._

 _"I'm a muw-de-wew."_ _He whispered, juicy tears falling down his pudgy cheeks._

 _Raion's eyes widened._

 _"What?!" He then lowered his voice seeing the scared look on the child's face. "Why do you think you're a murderer, Las?"_

 _"Because I…I k-killed my N-Nana."_

 _"What?! What do you mean you-" A flash of Deja-vou appeared in his mind. "Who told you that, Las?" He asked, his mind already planning all the gruesome things he's going to do to the said individual once he meets him. "Who told you, you killed your…uh…nana?"_

 _The boy sniffed._

 _"My Ada." He whispered. "He said that…if I just waited for him instead of being hot-headed, Nana would still be hewe." The big blue eyes filled with tears once more._

 _Raion blistered._

 _He may not know much of the elvish language, but he did know that the word 'Ada' means 'father'._

 _Squeezing the boy's shoulders, the ninja was raging inside._

 _How DARE that man accuse a child of murder! How DARE he put such a heavy burden on those small shoulders?! How DARE he leave his son to starve?!_

 _Oh the blame the boy must feel! No wonder he chose to run away!_

 _But not all his anger was directed at the father of this unfortunate elfling, some of it was directed at Thranduil, the king of Woodland elves._

 _The same so-called 'king' that allowed_ his _mother to be killed by orcs, in his own country._

 _It enraged the ninja that, after so many years had passed, the king still did_ nothing _to strengthen the security in this damned kingdom._

 _He wondered how many more little ones will have to lose their loved ones, for the stupid king to finally realize what was going on._

 _"Whoever you Adar is," Raion spoke slowly. "You shouldn't listen to him." He then looked into Legolas's eyes. "Don't you_ ever _let_ anyone _make you believe it was your fault, Las. You hear me? Not_ ever _."_

 _The boy wiped his eyes with the green sleeves._

 _"Mithrandir said that too." Legolas said. "When Ada was busy with some people and he and I were playing in the garden." The boy remembered suddenly. "He said to not let people blame me fow what happened to Nana."_

 _Raion smiled._

 _"Sounds to me like that 'Mithrandir' is a better father-figure than your actual dad." Legolas smiled sadly but his face quickly fell._

 _The ninja sighted._

 _"Listen, Las don't worry." He said pulling the boy's chin up with his finger. "It will get better in time, I promise." Raion smiled encouragingly. "Trust me, I've been through this. My own mother went the same way."_

 _Legolas looked up suddenly._

 _"Weally?"_

 _Raion nodded. "Thought I don't remember much of that time, my…teacher locked away my memories so that they won't intervene with my training, I do recall getting a lot of support and comfort from my father-figure." He smiled and ruffled the silky blond hair again. "And I'm sure you'll get plenty of that if you stick with that 'Mithrandir' guy."_

 _"You weally think so, Kit?" The child asked innocently._

 _The shinobi laughed._

 _"Of course I do, Las." He smiled again but his face quickly turned serious. "But, just in case Mithrandir won't be father-figure you hoped for, I need you to promise me something."_

 _Legolas looked at him with big eyes, waiting._

 _"Promise me that, even when you think the world is nothing but grey and black, you'll be strong for me, Las." Light silver-blue eyes met light-blue. "Carry on being funny and mischievous, don't ever let the tragedies of life pull you down." He then smiled again, ruffling the elfling's hair. "Can you promise me that, kid?"_

 _After a minute of silence, Legolas Greenleaf answered._

 _"I pwomise."_

 _Raion's smile broke into a big grin as he pulled the boy back into his embrace._

 _"Atta boy." He whispered into the child's blonde hair. "Now…" The ninja pulled away. "You should go back home, kid. I'm sure your father misses you very much by now."_

 _Legolas looked back at the way he came for and then back at the shinobi._

 _"Will I ever see you again, kitty?" He asked, tears in his eyes._

 _"I don't know, squirt." Raion said honestly. "But even if we never see each other again, I am proud to be called your friend."_

 _The boy smiled at that sadly, before giving the man a last minute hug and rushing towards his home, screaming:_

 _"I'm gonna miss you, Kitty!"_

 _Raion waved at him as he stood up._

 _"Yeah…" He whispered as he was slowly being pulled away from the land of dreams._

 _"I'll miss you to, kid."_


	10. Chapter 10

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 10

"The fellowship of the ring…plus Raion."

Elrond smiled as he watched the young ninja awake from his oblivion, still oblivious to the very uncomfortable position his body was in.

"Good morning, Master Raion." The elf lord stated, amusement clear in his voice. "I trust your sleep was undisturbed."

The younger elf let out a large yawn before rubbing his eyes with his fists.

"I slept like a little genin after his first sparing match, Elrond-san." Raion answered his voice strained. "And I feel like one too." He added after rubbing sleep of his eyelids. "My back stings."

The wise elf lord chuckled.

"I'm not surprised, my young friend." He said, mirth in his voice. "Considering the size of the bed you've chosen, I'm actually shocked you lasted that long."

Light silver-blue eyes, blinked at him.

"What do you mean, Elrond-san?" The younger elf asked, confused. "This is the bed I was appointed to yesterday. There was nothing wrong with it when I came to my room."

"Tell me, Master Ninja…" The Lord of Rivendell started, walking towards the nearby window. "Do you have the tendency to sleep-walk at night?" He asked, making his voice sound casual.

"No, my Lord." Raion answered shaking his head a bit painfully, due to the wood pressed against it. "At least…nobody ever told me I did. Why?"

Elrond looked back at the elf youth on the child-sized bed, with a mirthful smile.

"It seems like your body disagreed with my choice for your resting place, my dear child. And has wondered off to find a better one." He said, watching the pail silver-blue eyes widen. "Though, in all my infinite wisdom, I cannot phantom why it chose this particular room to break into…" Elrond wondered out loud, bending over and picking up the broken lock on the floor.

Raion was terrified at the lack of control over his body, not to mention its disrespectful behavior towards his host.

As a ninja he was trained to always be on guard, even if everything around him spoke of safety and no visible threats. The world was a deceiving place and one should trust _nothing_ but his guts and rely _solely_ on his training and experience, if there is to be any chance of survival.

It wasn't that he distrusted Lord Elrond, quite the opposite in fact, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

His masters spent countless of sleepless nights trying to teach his young body to slip into light meditation instead of falling sleep, during the nights.

Though the new method didn't sit well with him at the beginning- since it wasn't as good as sleeping- he could see the benefit of being aware of your surrounding during the night, especially if your roommate happened to be Meshiru-san.

And he has just thrown all that hard work out the window.

Kicking himself harshly, he promised to train advanced water techniques first thing after today's meeting. Since they, rightly so, were his 'Achilles heel', it was only fitting to use them as punishment to keep him from ever losing contact with the surrounding reality, in the nearby future.

Knowing he had to apologize for his disrespect, the young ninja tried to sit up…only to discover he was stuck firmly between one end of the bed and the other.

"What the-?" Raion muttered, struggling with all his might to free himself from the uncomfortably tight prison. "I can't move!" He cried out in the most un-elf and un-ninja like fashion, during his futile struggles for freedom.

Elrond chuckled at the look of distress in the younger elf's eyes, deeming it humorous that a warrior with skills that were the stuff of legends, could have trouble getting out of a bed.

"Here, Master Ninja," He said stepping up to the trapped elf. "Allow me to give you a hand."

It took a while but finally Raion was freed from his wooden trap.

"Take it easy now." Elrond said, gently and slowly pushing the ninja's back into bending. "Your spine has been locked in the same position for six hours straight, so it will be a little stiff for a couple of hours." The healer explained watching Raion's painful expression as he finally bent all the way. "I would recommend frequent exercising to uncramp the muscles and limit the pain, though if it's too much I can give you a few painkilling herbs-"

"No, no, Elrond-san." Raion breathed out, cutting of the elf Lord with a wave of his hand. "There is no pain. I'm fine, really." He then straightened up a bit to quickly for his hurt back, to emphasize the point and bit his bottom lip like a mad warg under his mask, to stop himself from groaning in displeasure. "S-See?" He asked, hoping the elder elf didn't notice how his voice sounded a bit strained. "No pain whatsoever."

The lord of Rivendell raised his legendary eyebrows.

"Are you sure?" He wasn't sure where to go with this one. On one hand Elrond knew the boy was in pain and was desperately trying to downgrade his hurt, which could hinder, not only his recovery, but also his effectiveness in combat, but on the other he didn't know him well enough, nor held any commanding authority over him, to order the child to take painkillers.

As a healer, he could really do was hope the ninja would make the reasonable decision and took the herbs.

Unfortunately for Elrond, Raion turned out to be just like his sons.

"I'm sure, Elrond-san." The ninja said sending up slowly and bending his back backwards, much to the displeasure of both his muscles and his bones, who cracked loudly in protest. _Oh...that felt good._ He thought bending over one more time. "Now…you said something about a meeting, my lord." Raion added, looking back at the Rivendell elf.

Elrond watched him awhile longer before slowly nodding his head and motioning for the shinobi to follow him.

"Yes, this way please." With those words he left the dusty, old room, leaving a trail of footsteps behind him. It was that precise moment when Raion took his first real look at the room he snuck into.

It was clear to him that this must be an old room of one of the Lord's son's, which looked to be out of use for quite some time. All the toys were covered in ten centimeters of dust, making them seem color and lifeless to the onlookers. The walls were in a similar state, what was once a brilliant green was now a dull gray, with the leaf symbols outlined with the dust. Everything looked as if a winter cloud appeared and sprinkled it all with snow.

 _Of all the available rooms in this palace…_ He groaned inwardly as he walked after his host. _Why did I walk into a children's one?_ He was annoyed by himself now. First he falls asleep despite all the training he withstood in order to stay aware at night, and now he found out he broke into a child's room because his bed was apparently too _big_ for him.

Raion snorted and wondered what his masters would say if they were alive right now.

Probably something about dishonoring the entire clan of shinobi and seppuku being the only way for him to ever die with dignity.

And Meshiru would laugh his pants off. Probably _is,_ wherever he ended up after death.

Yeah…the new mission was going by _wonderfully_.

In other words, they wouldn't be very happy with him. _Furious_ would be more like it.

"I was wondering, if you don't mind me asking…" Elrond's voice broke him out of thought as they walked through another rather lengthy, corridor. "What could you _possibly_ dream of, to break into a room in the middle of the night?" The elder elf looked over his shoulder at the black haired elf, with a small smile playing on his lips. "Must have been quite a dream."

Raion blushed beneath his black mask and looked down embarrassed.

It was bad enough an elite ninja like himself, would allow his mind to be careless enough to even _do_ such a thing. If he also had to explain the dream that _supposedly_ made him do it, would make him look like he lost a few marbles. Because _nobody_ will make him believe that: _Him falling asleep instead of meditating + little boy crying in the woods = him sleepwalking and breaking into a locked up room._

No. He'd rather burn alive and allow orcs to dance on his ashes, than tell the lord of Rivendell what happened in that dream.

"I'd _love_ to satisfy your curiosity, My Lord..." Raion said, looking up at the elder elf. "But I'm afraid I don't remember what exactly happened in that particular dream."

 _What?_ He asked his disapproving conscience. _I am obliged to answer the question, not tell the truth._

Elrond looked disappointed by his answer, probably expecting something really mind-blowing to flow out of the ninja's mouth, as he told his story.

"Oh well…" The lord sighted regretfully, turning back to facing the road. "Not all mysteries can be solved…perhaps for the better."

Raion couldn't possibly agree more.

"But…" Elrond continued. "If it ever begins to be a problem, I'd recommend for you to come see me." He said, his tone serious. "I take pride in my healing abilities and your case of spontaneous sleepwalking, would be a very interesting one to solve."

Before the younger elf had the chance to answer, another voice joined their conversation.

"Ada! Master Raion!" Aragorn walked over to them from a large meeting place located outside, a big smile on his bearded face. "Glad for you to finally join us." He embraced his father and gripped the younger elf in a friendly arm-squeeze. "We were getting worried our dear guest got lost in the palace and you spent the following half hour, looking for him." He joked earning himself a small smile from Elrond and a narrowed pretend-glare from Raion.

"Actually…you're not far from the truth, Estel." The dark haired elf began, ignoring the wide eyed look on his companions face.

"Really?" Aragorn smiled suggestively at Raion, who sent him his best 'don't-even-think-about-it' look. "Do tell."

"I'm afraid that will have to wait for another day, my son." Elrond's face suddenly turned serious. "We have much more important things to discuss at the moment."

Hearing that, Aragorn's face changed as well. Gone was the lighthearted smile and twinkling eyes, in their place was a serious frown and steel cold gray orbs.

He nodded and led them to the meeting room he exited from before, it looked like it was made in the middle of the kingdoms large gardens and there was a lot of people already there.

People Raion could not recognize.

There was another man, one with lighter hair and brown eyes standing in the back, glaring at him suspiciously. Next to him stood four young children, looking at him with fear mixed with wonder and awe, as if they couldn't decide whenever they were scared of how he looked or amazed at what he was. Besides the younglings was a figure not much taller but with a lot lore hair, a dwarf that was glaring at him with his beady little brown eyes. Next was the only figure that didn't seemed angered or scared by him, as well as the only person, besides Elrond and Aragorn, that he personally knew, the wizard that really liked the color gray, Gandalf. He, unlike the others, smiled at him in a friendly like manner all the while smoking a wooden pipe.

There were also others as well as a small rock table with a tiny gold ring atop it, but Raion didn't pay the any attention.

A small voice in the back of his skull told him that those seven individuals were the people Gandalf and Aragorn spoke of in "The Horseless Horseshoe", the ones he'll be spending the majority of time during the mission.

And they already didn't like him.

"Everyone," The ranger began. "May I present to you, Raion, ninja of the Western Temple and the ninth member of the Fellowship."

Their reactions upon hearing made him think one, single thought:

 _I remain to be corrected._

* * *

JA107: Sorry for the slow updates, folks! It just so happens that I'm a very (multiply that 'very' a couple of times) lazy person and need a specific form of encouragement called 'reviews' and 'favorites', to make me want to move my behind and type XP.

Anyhoo, hope you enjoyed the chap XD.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed this in the past! I really appreciate it! XD

See u soon guys!

JA107 over and out.


	11. Chapter 11

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 11

"Boromir's way of saying hello."

Raion shifted his weight form one foot to another under the distrustful and frightened gazes of the gathered people, feeling uncomfortable and extremely self-conscious.

Their chakra signatures were sparkling with emotions. Some with wonder and amazement, others with distrust and hatred. The intensity of each chakra spike varied from the strength of those emotions the person was experiencing and, so far, the brightest one representing hatred came from the second human in the group.

Boromir.

The blond soldier glared at him from his spot between Gimli and one of the hobbits, clearly despising the black-clad warrior's very being. His chocolate-brown eyes burning with anger and hate, his hands clinched into fists so hard his knuckles were white and his face twisted into a snarl.

Raion held the man's gaze with calm eyes, clearly unfazed by his demonstration of disgust and unprovoked hatred.

Icy silver-blue clashed with burning dark brown.

Fire vs Ice.

They watched each other for a good few seconds before the warrior broke the silence.

"So…this is a ' _Ninja_ '." He spat the name as if it was the most disgusting thing in the world. "One of the warriors that were said to possess stronger magical powers than the Isari, fighting skills that put other legends to shame and are capable of cutting a mountain in two with their swords." His head was high and twisted in disgust.

"Hai…" Raion agreed slowly, not knowing where the mad blonde is leading this conversation and deciding to play it safe. Most of the things Boromir said was true. There were ninjas who could slice a mountain in half and possessed skills that made other legends sound like child's play, although he was not one of them. Yet.

The blonde warrior snorted.

"Not only is he and his kind _cowards,_ but also overconfident and arrogant _fools_." He stated coldly, ignoring Aragorn's signals to 'shut up'. "Hiding in their petty _temples_ , afraid to go into the world and _fight_ like everyone else!"

Raion's eyes narrowed further.

"This was never our war to fight." He answered calmly to which Boromir only answered with more aggression.

"Last time _I_ checked we're _all_ from Middle Earth." The Gondorian snarled back and moved a step closer to the black warrior before Aragorn had the chance to grab him. "So, unless you and your kind lived on the moon, this _was_ your fight from the very _start!_ "

"My kind came to Middle Earth from beyond the sea, a very long time ago." Raion's voice remained calm despite Boromir's comments. "That fact alone made us outsiders, ones that didn't want to get involved in a battle that wasn't our own."

"Sauron and Morgoth before him, wanted _all_ of Middle Earth destroyed." Boromir continued his rant. "And that _included_ your _precious_ little _temples_." He pointed a finger at Raion's chest. "Sooner or later he would attack you, so _why_ didn't you join our cause and prevented all this from happening?!"

"The lord of darkness was not foolish enough to lead an attack on one of our temples back then when my kind still existed in larger numbers." The ninja said looking Boromir in the eyes. "The leader of all clans sent out a message to both sides of the conflict, saying that we didn't want to get involved in their fight but if they dare cross our borders, we'll wipe them out of existence." Raion's tone told the gathered humans everything they needed to know: 'The ninjas were strong enough to do it, and even the lords of darkness knew they had no chance against them.'

"Oh so you _did_ have the power to destroy the masters of all darkness and yet you _didn't_ do it! Allowing _millions_ of _innocent_ people to get _slaughtered_ by orcs under their commands!" The Gondorian yelled, getting dangerously close to Raion. "This whole mess with the ring and the Fellowship wouldn't be happening right now if it wasn't for your _Clan Leaders_ cowardness!"

"And what do you think would happen if we actually _were_ allowed to choose a side, Gondorian?!" The ninja had enough of Boromir's 'finger-pointing', putting all the blood spilt on their battle between good and evil on his hands. "There were four ninja clans during our Golden Age _. Four_ organized groups made of highly trained super-soldiers able to make tsunami waves and other earthly cataclysms out of _thin air_ , summon giant _monsters_ capable of leveling _cities_ with the ground and turn the dead into living _zombies_ , if they so feel like it!" The ninja then looked deep into Boromir's eyes. "Now imagine what would happen if _two_ of the four clans joined Sauron, while the rest teamed up with Elrond-san and the rest of Middle Earth."

All the eyes watching the two widened at the picture Raion painted in their heads and they immediately understood why he and his clan were not allowed to participate in the war individually.

If the ninjas were forced to fight against each other the world would go into complete chaos. Having the same weapons at their disposal, both Sauron and the elves would try to use the ninjas as much as possible, placing one side's destruction-bringing abilities against those of the opposing team. Bit by bit destroying the place they both would fight to protect/obtain.

The consequences of such battles would be ending with no Middle Earth left to save.

Raion allowed the gathered people a few minutes of silence to contemplate on what he just said. He knew that some Middle Earthinas were angry at his kind for never participating in the war against Mordor despite clearly having enough power to do so, and, on some level, understood their frustration.

Back when he was younger he also wanted them to join the fight. Once he even disobeyed the 'do-not-get-involved' rule and helped the elves fight against orcs during the 'Battle of the Five Armies', which ended with him getting in trouble.

* * *

 _"Taseko-san let me explain-"_

 _"There is nothing to_ explain _, Raion!" His sensei yelled swinging his arms up in aggravation. "You disobeyed the most important rule in the Temple and got involved in a battle that did_ not _concern_ you _!"_

 _"Those people were_ outnumbered, _sensei!" Sixteen-year-old Raion screamed back. "They would get brutally_ slaughtered _by those orcs or burned alive by Smaug, if I didn't step in!"_

 _"You left your guard duty, disobeyed an order from your superior and placed yourself in_ danger _by taking part in a battle you couldn't_ possibly _win!" Taseko knew the young teen only did what he though was right, but he needed his apprentice to know that disobedience will not be taken lightly. "That's_ not _what a ninja worth his title_ does _, Raion!"_

 _"That battle wouldn't be so_ impossible _if Keshin-san allowed us to help the elves!" The child yelled back. "The people of Middle Earth are dying every day killed by orcs and eaten alive by wargs, while we sit around protecting sourly our territory and polishing our blades!" Raion waved his arms around in utter frustration. "Why do we train so hard to gain new skills, if training is all we use them for?! Why can't we use them to rid the earth of Sauron and his army?! Why do we sit around doing_ nothing _?!"_

 _Taseko sighted and rubbed his aching temples. His kid, despite normally being calm and quite rational for his few years, was entering an age-period that was infamous for rebellious behavior that was now showing its ugly head._

 _"Raion sometimes the two sides of conflict have to work out their problems on their own, without the help of an outside source." The teen grumbled clearly not satisfied with the answer given to him and stubbornly standing by his idea._

 _Taseko sighted at that, suddenly growing very tired._

 _"Raion would you like to become a weapon fighting another man's battle?"_

 _The boy blinked at the question._

 _"Iya, sensei. (no sensei)" He quickly answered, looking up at his mentor with a questioning look in his eyes. "I don't think anyone does."_

 _"Then you just answered your own question." Taseko said and began to walk away, leaving the young ninja to his thoughts._

* * *

Of course he was young back then and didn't understand what his mentor meant, but given time he began to see his point of view.

Not only would the earth they walked upon get terribly destroyed if they were allowed to battle using their incredible skills, but he and his people would be used as secret weapons by either side they chose _specifically_ because of those abilities.

It was better if they did not get involved at all.

Eight pairs of multicolored eyes shifted back to the arguing pair when Raion began speaking again.

"After everything you've heard here, can you answer this simple question?" He then paused and continued to gaze into Boromir's brown eyes. "Do you still think not getting involved, was a bad idea?"

The Gondorian didn't answer for a long period of time, before speaking.

"Perhaps it wasn't, but why then are you helping _now_?"

Raion let out a slow breath, closing his eyes as he did so.

"Because I'm the only ninja left and I can't possibly drag people that are long dead, into a war."

JA107: Jesus what a chap! God I hope it makes sense ^^'. I'm sorry if I confuse anyone but I had to place a reason why ninjas never got involved in the war before, and those are the best reasons I could think of.

Sorry again.

Over and out


	12. Chapter 12

"Black Lion of Middle Earth."

Chapter 12

"What do we have here?"

"Whatever the reason was for Raion and his clan to not take part in the events occurring in Middle Earth, it doesn't change the decision of taking him with us." Aragorn said swiftly placing himself between the ninja and the Gondorian, before any other words could escape both their mouths. "He's one of the Fellowship now, Boromir." He spoke seriously to the fellow human. "And he is coming whenever you like it or not."

But the Gondorian warrior just sneered.

"If that's your final decision I will not oppose." He said curtly. "Though I fail to see the point of even _forming_ a Fellowship anymore." The blonde then pointed at the said ninja. "If even _half_ of the legends about the Shinobi race is true, then he shouldn't have any problems completing the mission on his own." Boromir then looked deep into Aragorn's eyes. "Why even bother with us? He _clearly_ doesn't need our help."

"You're right." Raion's voice said from the back of the room where the elf stood leaning on a stone anchor, far from the place he was last seen standing next to Aragorn. Everyone looked at the black clad warrior in shock, since nobody saw him move. "I don't need you." He added after a pause. "If anything your company would be nothing but a hindrance to me." Raion said with a small shrug, earning more than one dirty look from the rest of the fellowship. "Your complete lack of proper stealth training would only give away my position, and the large number would attract more enemy attention than even my bizarre clothing." He then pushed himself away from the pillar and begun walking towards the window. "But…as much as it would save us all a lot of trouble, that's not my purpose in this mission since I'm, technically, not a part of the Fellowship." He held up his glowed hand to stop Gandalf from intruding. "Peace, Gandalf-san. Let me clarify." The wizard grumbled but otherwise complied. "Arigato. Now, as I was saying, Gandalf-san hired me to _protect_ those who head towards Mordor, nowhere in our talk earlier did anyone mention taking something to Mount Doom on my own. If I go I will only be there to make sure everyone comes home in one piece, nothing more."

"Dwarves don't _need_ protection, you prissy elf!" Gimli yelled, insulted that such an idea was even _suggested_. " _Especially_ not from the likes of _you!_ "

"My _mission_ ," Raion began as he walked up to the cranky dwarf, using his greater height to his advantage and glaring down at the son of Golin. "Is to keep _the Fellowship_ safe and, like it or _not_ , you _are_ a part of that group now." His ice-blue eyes narrowed to near slits. "So I'm afraid you'll have to _deal_ with it, unless you want to argue with Gandalf-san." A black eyebrow raised at the dwarf challengingly. "As you know, _he_ is the one who asked for me _specifically_ for this mission." He indicated the wizard with a nod of his head. "If you have any problems with me being here, I _suggest_ you voice them to _him_."

Elrond turned his dark questioning gaze to the Isari.

"Have you chosen him for a reason _other_ than him being the last ninja on Middle Earth, Mithrandir?" The wise elf lord asked his longtime friend, resting his chin on the palm of his hand.

"His involvement was critical for the quest to be complete." Gandalf said surely. "It could be no one else."

"And why is that?" Elrond pressed on.

"Our history has already been altered from its original course." The wizard's voice was grave and regretful. "Though there is no way for me to fix the mistake made in the past, I can at least ensure that our future will proceed as foretold." He then looked at the son of Golin. "I am sorry Gimli, but I'm afraid he is just as necessary for this quest to succeed as you are." Then he added more grimly. "Otherwise there will be unforeseen consequences neither of us are equipped to deal with."

With nobody voicing other objections to Raion essentially tagging along with the Fellowship, Gandalf's latest argument was thankfully enough to stop the dwarf from arguing any further, the elf lords returned to explaining the significance of their voyage and its role in the incoming war.

"Having the One Ring in our possession gives us an advantage against the overpowering might of Sauron, we never had before." Glorfindel stated from his seat next to Elrond. "Though it might equally be a weakness." Receiving several nods from his fellow elves, the golden haired warrior continued. "Knowing that we have to cross the Black Gate to destroy the cursed object in the fires of Mount Doom, makes us predictable and easy to trap."

"Why is it necessary for us to take this…ring to Mount Doom in order to destroy it?'' Raion's voice asked from his new spot at the Balrog Slayer's side, its sudden appearance next to him making the proud warrior flinch. "Wouldn't it be easier to just melt it in a fireplace?"

His question caused the gathered people to look at him as if he grown another head, and making the ninja feel self-conscious and a bit unnerved.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" He asked, perhaps with a tone a bit more accusing than it should.

"Don't you know what this is?" Aragorn asked raising an eyebrow and gesturing to the ring placed on a pedestal in the middle of the circle created by the chairs.

"I am not knowledgeable in your history and legends." The shinobi admitted shrugging, to the likes of him this was unimportant information.

"So you are unaware of the Rings of Power and what they are capable of?" Elrond's eyebrows nearly touched his dark hair.

"I have gathered pieces of that story during my travels through your countries." Raion said. "I know that there are nine rings of power in total, and that most of them are either lost or long since destroyed. Except a few that are in the hands of the elves and the, so called, One Ring that I'm guessing is the object I'm supposed to guard on the journey."

"What you know is not much." Elrond stated. "But it will suffice for now. As for your question, the only sure way to destroy the Ring of Power is to drown it in the fire that created it, which is the magma that boils inside Mount Doom."

"Have you tried destroying it using chakra?"

"Chakra?" One of Gimili's escort dwarves asked.

"I can sense a large amount of dark chakra emitting from the cursed ring." Raion answered ignoring the dwarf. "Whoever made this ring was knowledgeable enough in the art of my people to mix it with wizard magic, and make this the formidable weapon you now fear." Immediately on his silent command his right fist flared with blue light. "If it was created using black chakra _and_ the fire of Mount Doom…perhaps simply using _another one_ of the key factors that helped create it, will have the same results as throwing it into lava."

Without a warning he rushed towards the ring with his hand positioned to strike, ignoring the warning yells from Aragorn and Gandalf, and, once close enough, hit the little gold thing with all his strength.

He didn't expect it to withstand his attack...

He didn't expect to be blown away by its immense power...

He didn't expect to see a flash of a giant red cat-like eye before he landed…

He didn't expect to hear a voice in his head saying:

" _Hello, little Ninja."_

In a language only _he_ was supposed to know after the death of his clan.


End file.
